Obsessedsportsnut's Blog

July 8, 2010

The Lebron James Fiasco

Filed under: basketball — Tags: , , , , , , — Jonathan Lee @ 12:05 am

Rumors have it this evening that Lebron James will be joining Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh in Miami for the near future, combining a trio of players unseen in the NBA since the 1980s. Tomorrow night, on the outside, Lebron James might seem happy about this decision, but on the inside, I have to believe that he’s not thrilled with how everything played out.

All along, we knew the following thing: Lebron James really wanted to play with either Dwayne Wade or Chris Bosh, or both.

However, while he would love to play with Wade, I believe Lebron wanted Wade to join him at a new team, whether it’d be Chicago, New Jersey, or New York. Wade lead Miami to the title in 2006, and this is clearly his team. If Lebron James goes to Miami, he will definitely be 2nd fiddle to Wade in the eyes and hearts of all the fans. If Miami ends up winning titles, the knock on Lebron will be that he had to join Wade in Miami to win a title…he couldnt win it by himself. Wade didnt need Lebron to win it.

All along, analysts and commentators believed that Lebron James would shape the entire free agency picture. He would be the first domino to fall, and everything else would just fall into place after his decision. Deep down inside, I believe Lebron felt that he had complete control over the situation…even going so far as to think that Bosh and Wade would follow his decision and what he did.

Has Lebron James been completely torn over where to go? Who knows? But for the sake of discussion, lets suppose that as of Wednesday morning, he was still unsure where to go. After hearing that Bosh and Wade both decided on Miami, I feel that the decision wasnt his anymore, and that his hands were tied.

He knew that if he went anywhere else, hed have to compete against Bosh, Wade, and a probably very strong Miami team. He knew that if he didnt join them, hed still have to compete against other strong teams like Orlando and Boston. After hearing about Bosh and Wade, Lebron James really has no other choice but to go to Miami if he wants the best chance to winning championships. Had he gone to another team, his life in the Eastern Conference would continue to be a nightmare.

But at the same time, I think he’s taking a big hit, and his brand name will suffer. Again, he’d be going to Miami to a team that already has a beloved player. James would always be 2nd in the eyes of Heat fans. Even if he wins championships, he will still continue to face criticism for not being able to achieve this on his own.

Deep down inside, I think Lebron wished that Bosh or Wade would join him at either Chicago, New Jersey, or even in Cleveland, though Bosh was 100% against that idea. On these teams, he’d have as good as a shot to win the title, but then he’d also be better positioned to be the alpha dog of his team.

For the first time in his life, Lebron didnt get his way. For the first time, he had to base his decision on others. Let’s see how he deals with it.

June 27, 2010

Lebron James and the 2010 Free Agent Class

Filed under: basketball — Tags: , , , , , , — Jonathan Lee @ 2:59 pm

Any true fan of basketball would have had July 1st, 2010 marked on their calendars with a big large red circle for the past couple years? Why? Its the day where the entire basketball landscape could drastically change, where the balance of power would be affected for the next decade or longer. Dynasties could be started, and franchises just utterly destroyed.

July 1st, 2010 is the first day of the beginning of the the summer free agency period, where teams can finally meet and make bids on this year’s free agent class, which might be the best free agent class…in history…of any sport.

Take a look at who’s on the market this year…

Group 1: Stars whose contract expired following the 2009-10 season and can sign anywhere

Joe Johnson, Steve Nash, Carlos Boozer, Chris Paul, Ray Allen, Manu Ginobili, Tracy Mcgrady, Shaquille O’Neal, Stephen Jackson, Jermaine O’Neal, Brad Miller, Mike Miller

Group 2: Stars who are signed through 2011, but can opt out of their contract in 2010 if they so choose

Lebron James, Yao Ming, Amare Stoudemire, Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh, Dirk Nowitzki, Josh Howard, Michael Redd

Then there is another whole group of “2nd tier” players who can move around that can add value to many teams.

Obviously, Lebron James is the biggest name out of everyone, and what he does will cause a ripple effect throughout the entire league. No team will sign a player or make a trade without knowing where Lebron James is planning to go.

Where he goes is the million dollar question. Only a handful of teams has the salary cap space to mathematically sign him. In no particular order, Cleveland Cavs, Miami Heat, Chicago Bulls, New York Knicks, and the New Jersey Nets.

The two, yet extremely related, things to realize about Lebron are his desire to win and his appreciation for the history of the game. Lebron doesnt want to be known as our generation of Karl Malone, one of the best players to never win a championship. Lebron knows that despite all his personal achievements and record setting performances, he never can be mentioned in the same breath as Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, or Kobe Bryant. To legitimize his case as one of the best players in history, Lebron needs to win…and he has a lot of catching up to do if he wants to catch up with Jordan and Kobe.

This also makes me believe that all the teams that are trying to use their city as a selling point wont succeed. The New York Knick and New Jersey Nets are both trying to get Lebron to go to the Big Apple so that “he can use the city to further his name and grow his empire.” Honestly, Lebron doesnt need a city to grow his name. He’s one of the best business-mined athletes in any sport, and he talks to Warren Buffet weekly about investing advice. Heck, even when he was playing in a “small” city like Cleveland, Lebron was able to grow a worldwide empire.

Lebron wants to win now, and will only go to a team that will give him the best opportunity to win.

Let’s take a look at Lebron’s suitors, from least likely to most likely.

5. New York Knicks

Why Lebron would go to the Knicks: “basketball” capital of the world. the chance to play in Madison Square Garden. Knicks has a ton of cap space and could sign other star free agents

Why Lebron would not go to the Knicks: no decent building blocks of players (David Lee, Al Harrington, Wilson Chandler) currently there.

Like I mentioned above, Lebron will not be sold on the allure of city. The Knicks simply dont have the existing talent that Lebron would want to play with. In order for Lebron to even remotely think about going to the Knicks, he would want both Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh to come along, which is very highly improbable.

4. Cleveland Cavaliers

Why Lebron would go to the Cavs: The highest possible contract of any team. Loyalty to the city and fans

Why Lebron would not go the Cavs: Team simply isnt good enough.

For Lebron, I truly believe it wont be about the money. He will go to the team that will field him the best team. With that, the Cavs just simply cant provide him such a team. Ive said it all along that Lebron’s supporting cast for these past couple of years is simply poor. He needs an upgrade at PG over Mo Williams, a new center (Shaq’s leaving), and a secondary scorer (Antwan Jamison isnt as good as he used to be).

3. Miami Heat

Why Lebron would go to the Heat: The opportunity to play with Dwayne Wade

Why Lebron would not go the Heat: Being second fiddle to Dwayne Wade

Lebron James would love to play with Wade, but at the same time, James wants to be the main face of the franchise. After leading the Heat to the NBA championships, Wade is the face of the franchise and will not relinquish that title to Lebron. I dont think Lebron’s ego can handle that.

On a side note, I fully expect Wade to stay in Miami. I also predict that they’ll bring in Amare Stoudemire to join him.

2. New Jersey Nets

Why Lebron would go to the Nets: 2009 All-Star PG Devin Harris. Center Brook Lopez who can be one of the best centers of his generation. Cap space to sign Chris Bosh. New Coach Avery Johnson. New owner Mikhail Prokhorov. Jay-Z is a minority owner. Brand new stadium in Brooklyn in 2012. Play in New York City

Why Lebron would not go the Nets: The Chicago Bulls

The New Jersey Nets are a great fit for Lebron James. They have a solid core in Devin Harris, Courtney Lee, and Brook Lopez, who will soon be a perennial all-star. They also just drafted Derrick Favors, who might turn out to be one fine player. They also have the ability to sign Chris Bosh as well.

A starting 5 of Lebron, Bosh, Lee, Harris, and Lopez? Yeah that can be good. They also just signed Avery Johnson, a great young coach and winner of the 2006 Coach of the Year award.

Coupled that with a new owner who isnt afraid to open his wallet, his great friendship with Jay-Z, and the media market that is New York City, the Nets would be a great choice for Lebron.

However, only one team stands in the way..

1. Chicago Bulls

The Bulls can match anything that the Nets can offer, a PG in Derrick Rose and a young Center in Joakim Noah. However, Rose is far better than Devin Harris, and Noah isnt that far behind in Lopez in terms of development. After trading away Kirk Hinrich’s massive contract, the Bulls put themselves into position to sign two max contract free agents, meaning Chris Bosh can go to Chicago as well.

Like the Nets, the Bulls just signed a new coach, Tom Thibodeau, who previously served as Assistant Coach under Doc Rivers in Boston where he was in charge of Boston’s great defense.

I believe the Nets and Bulls will give Lebron the best chance to win in the future.

What I think it will come down to is what Lebron understands best: history.

Lebron knows everything about Michael Jordan and what he did playing for Chicago. He also knows what Jordan meant to the entire city. He also knows that when his playing career is over, everything will be compared to what Michael Jordan accomplished at Chicago.

Could it be intimidating as hell passing by the United Center every day and seeing a statue of Michael Jordan in the front? Hell yeah. But I dont believe Lebron has or ever will back away from a challenge. There’s no better way to be compared with a person, than trying to take on his legacy head-on.

Chicago has and will always be faithful to Jordan, so Lebron will have to win over their hearts, and the only way to do that is to start winning championships again.

I really think Lebron is relishing this opportunity.

June 24, 2010

Weekly Recap: 6/17 – 6/24

Filed under: basketball, hockey, weekly recap — Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , — Jonathan Lee @ 2:50 pm

I’ve realized for a lot of people, my blog posts are their only connection with the sports world. I know its weird…I find it shocking when people dont have espn.com set at their browser homepage.

So, I’ve decided to create a “weekly recap” post that take a look at some of the bigger stories in sports this past week. Just a warning to my non-Bay Area readers, I’ll probably be heavily Bay Area biased…so be aware.

Since I have to release a “weekly report” to my boss every week on Thursday at 2pm, I’ve decided that I’m going to try to release this recap thing Thursday afternoons as well. Yeah…multitasking at its finest.

World Cup

Probably the greatest sporting event in the world, and what I’ve been writing about for the past two weeks. I wont spend time talking about it here, though you can read about two of the bigger surprises: the US’s achievements so far and the French disaster.

The epic tennis match at Wimbledon between John Isner and Nicolas Mahut…

6-4, 3-6, 6-7 (7), 7-6 (3), 70-68. Simply…insane.

Just take a look at the records set in this game…

1) Longest match ever: 11 hours 5 minutes over a total of 3 days.
2) Longest set: 5th set lasted 8 hours 11 minutes
3) Most games in a set: 138 in the 5th
4) Most games in a match: 183
5) Most aces in a match by one player: Isner, 112
6) Total aces in a match: 215 total

This went down as the most epic tennis match ever played, and its a feat that will probably never ever be duplicated. What was absolutely stunning was the sheer quality of play throughout the 11 hours. There were 510 winners and 215 total aces, with only 122 unforced errors. The human will power shown during the entire game, and the emotions display at the completion of the game, coupled with the tremendous fan support, were all a testament to the beauty of sports.

The San Jose Sharks Offseason

After the Sharks were eliminated from the playoffs last year, talk immediately went to who the Sharks were going to sign: either Patrick Marleau or Evgeni Nabokov, two of the longest tenured Sharks and two of the fan favorites. Both player’s contracts were up, and the Sharks only had enough salary cap space to sign one of these players. Sign Marleau, lose Nabokov. Sign Nabokov, lose Marleau. It was a heated debate, with fans taking sides of one player or the other.

I took the side of Patrick Marleau, who I think is the heart and sole of this Sharks team, and someone who I wish retires as a Shark. Even throughout all the disappointments of these past couple seasons, Marleau has been the one who has always fought hard for his team.

With regards to Nabokov, he’s one of the great goaltenders of this league, but has never been able to perform well in the playoffs. Come playoff time, you need a goalie who will “steal” games and series for you, and Nabokov never came through for the Sharks. He never got “hot”. This past playoffs, Nabokov played his best ever, yet at the same time, he still let in a lot of soft goals that he should have stopped. What did this show me? Even when Nabokov plays his best, it’s really not good enough to win.

In the end, Nabokov was the one who was let go. Nabokov will be missed, as he was one of the fan’s favorite players. I wish him the best of luck.

Today, Patrick Marleau was signed to a 4 year contract, worth $6.9 million/season. This deal makes me love Marleau even more. Why? Marleau was the premier Center on the market this year, and could have attracted top money from numerous teams. While his $6.9 million/season is a lot, there are 20+ players who make more than him. He deserves to be one of the top paid players in the league, but he gave the Sharks a “hometown” discount to stay with the team.

NBA Free Agency Frenzy

And the buildup to the biggest summer in NBA history has begun, with two of the biggest players making key moves.

First, the Miami Heat traded Daequan Cook and an 18th pick to Oklahoma City for the 32nd pick in the round.
Then, the Chicago Bulls traded Kirk Hinrich and the 17th pick to the Wizards for players/picks to be announced.

While these trades might seem lopsided or unfair, they were done for one purpose only: to free up cap space to try to lure top players come July 1st. By trading away Cook and their 18th pick (who’s value is around $3 million), the Miami Heat has enough salary cap room to sign 3 max-contract players, their own Dwayne Wade and possibly two others, like Chris Bosh or Amare Stoudemire.

By getting rid of Hinrich’s $9 million contract, the Bulls freed enough cap room to sign 2 maximum-salary players from this years market, supposedly rumored to be Lebron James and Chris Bosh.

After all these deals, here’s an analyst’s projection of summer cap space.

1. New York Knicks – $34.2 million
2. Chicago Bulls – $29.1 million
3. New Jersey Nets – $27.2 million
4. Miami Heat – $26.2 million

Come July, it’ll be very interesting to see how things fall.

On a side note, The Warriors made a similar trade where they traded away Corey Maggette to Milwaukee for Charlie Bell and Dan Gadzuric. This wasn’t a trade for player quality in mind. Rather, this again was a salary dump trade. Maggette still has 3 years and $31 million on his contract, which the Bucks were willing to pick up since they’ll most likely lose John Salmons to free agency this year. Gadzuric only has $7.2 million in his last year on his contract, while Bell has $8 million over two years. By getting rid of Maggette’s insane contract, and losing Gadzuric’s contract after next season, the Warriors will too have a little cap space to try to get a quality free agent this summer.

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