Like I have stated many times I grew up on Long Island, New York. Most would think that due to that and the fact my dad is a lifelong Knicks fan, that I would be the same. Most would be dead wrong. I actually grew up a Dallas Mavericks fan. I know that’s crazy but at a young age, a big 3 of Steve Nash, Michael Finley and a young Dirk was just too captivating. I really am just a fan of basketball and the game itself. I grew up in the Jordan Era. I Grew up with John Starks, Charles Barkley, Stockton and Malone, Clyde Drexler, Dominique, David Robinson etc. I also had the privilege to grow up in the Kobe era as a child . I watched Kobe and Shaq dominate the NBA. Allen Iverson, Tracy McGrady, Vince Carter. I gravitated towards the masters of their craft. So it is no surprise, that while I was in middle and High School, I was fascinated by a young and upcoming superstar named LeBron James.
I initially heard about LeBron when he was gaining national attention while at St. Vincent St Mary’s High School. I followed and watched like a hawk. I patiently awaited his arrival to the NBA because it was pretty clear he was too good for college and NBA stars were already praising his abilities. Sky was the limit when it came to his potential. I couldn’t wait for draft night. By this point everyone on the planet knew he was going to be a Cavalier. What a story. The kid from Akron was going to be staying home right there in Ohio, but as a professional in the NBA. After Draft night, my fandom was at an all time high. I bought his Cleveland jersey home and away, I bought his High School jersey home and away, I had jeans that were half jeans/half his Cleveland jersey. I had his headbands, his shoes, his posters, everything. I watched that first game against Sacramento and every single game of his first stint in Cleveland like a hawk. I studied LeBron like a book. He was the funnest athlete to watch. His athletic ability was insane. He took one of the most lackluster rosters of all time to the NBA Finals! I mean a roster who’s second best player was Ilgauskas. No disrespect to Big Z, but this showed just how good LeBron was. But those first few years were also very frustrating. Dan Gilbert just couldn’t build around him. LeBron bein the man he is, all he wanted to do was win. I see that now as clear as day but back then I didn’t really care for the behind the scenes stuff. Year’s of falling short and being frustrated by lack of depth, LeBron entered his 1st year of free agency.
That summer, every day of my life was LeBron watch. I was desperately praying that Mark Cuban could work some magic and bring him to Dallas. A big part of me also wanted him to choose New York. It would have reignited a franchise that was headed downhill and it was my dad’s and so many friends team. I woke up and with breakfast in hand every morning, stayed glued to ESPN until the last second I had to leave for work. While at work I was grateful most of it was driving because I listed to WFAN and ESPN radio all day long. I got home flipped on ESPN and turned the volume to 100 so I could hear it in the shower. I was obsessed. Finally, the moment came where he announced he was airing his decision on tv at a school in Connecticut. I thought to myself, ” Damn he’s coming to NY, he’s holding this event on the east coast, he has to be”. The rumblings began though. Chris Broussard was the first one to break that he was going to sign with the Heat. I thought there was no way. The Heat had already signed Chris Bosh and brought back Dwayne Wade, there was no way they were going to bring LeBron in too. There was no way that LeBron would take the easy way out. The night came. Myself, my dad, a couple of friends were all having a few beers and a couple of appetizers watching the big decision. He then uttered the words “I’m taking my talents to South Beach and playing for the Miami Heat”. I was crushed. I was pissed. All that love and all that fandom became pure anger and white hot hatred.
I blasted him. I ridiculed him. I threw away every piece of LeBron gear that I had (i regret that terribly now). I was still young. I was 21 and hot headed. I was also psychotically obsessed with sports. I went on social media and raged. I called radio stations screaming like a lunatic. I was furious every single day that he was a member of the Miami Heat.
That first season, the Miami Heat made the NBA Finals and who was there to take them on but the Dallas Mavericks. A dream come true for me. The first years of this so called dynasty and here’s my team ready to take down who I thought was the worst super villain the NBA had ever seen. The Mavericks took the series in 6 games. I was the happiest man on the face of the earth. I saw Dirk finally get his title and simultaneously crush the hopes of LeBron and heat fans everywhere. Ahh it was a thing of beauty. The next 2 years were awful.
The Heat ran right through the league for back to back titles and so began the GOAT debate. I won’t get into that. That debate is dead and I’ll explain why later. At the end of 2014, LeBron entered free agency once again and this is where everything started to turn around again for me. I started watching him again. I saw a different LeBron. I saw a changed LeBron. Most importantly I saw an incomplete LeBron. He had it all. The money, the fame, the beautiful family life with his wife and kids. He began using his platform and voice as a major star to speak out and raise awareness to various topics. He relentlessly pursued charity work and strived toward making the world a better place where it mattered Most, in the younger generations. He then penned the beautiful letter to the Players Tribune that he was going home to finish what he started. It was time to complete his legacy. All the respect for I had lost had come back, and then some. I was rooting for him again. I wanted him to succeed. I wanted him to release that pain I could see and get that Cleveland monkey off his back. And he did. The night the Cavs beat the Warriors, I was ecstatic. He finally did it. He finally brought a title home. I couldn’t have been happier for him. He was finally free.
The next chapter of his life, I could care less what he chose to do. He had earned the right to do what he wanted for him and his family. He eventually chose LA and the Lakers. It was perfect. Kobe had just retired and they were desperate to be relevant again having been mediocre at best the last few seasons. The whole culture changed. Lakers fans were excited again. LeBron is poised to bring them back to the promise land. Especially after adding MVP candidate Anthony Davis and plenty of worthy role players. Basketball is alive and well in LA. That is, up until Sunday, January 26th.
Man, losing Kobe was a loss for the entire world. Not basketball, not sports, but the world. I saw grown men cry this week. I saw Lebron barely containing himself having to almost be held up and consoled as he got to the airport after hearing the news. Last night like the rest of the world, I watched the Lakers take the floor for the first time since the tragedy that claimed 9 lives. I watched as LeBron and his teammates could barely hold it together but held each other up in the most trying time of their lives. I saw Lebron, being the man he is, lift LA and the rest of the world up and take the court as only Kobe and Gianna would have wanted. Thank you LeBron we all needed that.
This brings me back to the GOAT debates we all love to have. This week has made me appreciate what I have. It’s made me love harder than I ever loved before. But also, to appreciate what we have in feont of us every second we have It, because it can get ripped away from us at any moment. We should stop comparing these men and appreciate the hard work and sacrifice and level of determination they give us every step of the way. We have to claim Kareem, Russell, Jordan, Kobe and Lebron as kings of their respective era’s instead of crossing them over. Appreciate the fact that without them, we wouldn’t have basketball. We wouldn’t even have the chance to debate these sort of things because it could have died out years ago. LeBron , whether you ever read this or not, thank you. Thank you for what you have done for the game. Thank you for what you have done for this world. Thank you for helping the underprivileged realize their dreams. Thank you for being a role model for my kids. Thank you for being transcendent and passionate and having that shine through eveey time you speak or take the court. You’re one of a kind. And I think I speak for everyone in the sports world when I say, LeBron, get it done this year, bring a title back to LA, Kobe has your back, and so does any real fan of the game.
To The Rack With Mac 