Top Five Reasons Lebron Should Stay in Cleveland
This is the top five reasons Lebron James should spend the rest of his basketball career in Cleveland.
Post Comment|1 Liked It
- The Springsteen Theory- Lebron grew up in Akron, and has lived his whole life in the Cleveland area. The city has completely embraced him as their “chosen one”, and view him as their reward for hard work and tough sports years. Since he was in eighth grade the city of Cleveland has promoted Lebron as their superstar; Lebron playing for anyone beside the Cavs would be like Bruce Springsteen singing about California instead of New Jersey. If Lebron stays in Cleveland, he becomes to Cleveland what Springsteen is to Jersey. Whenever you have a chance to be the icon for anything you do not pass it up. Staying in Cleveland ensures Lebron that he will be an icon for generations past his playing days.
- The Hollywood/Girlfriend Theory- Lebron knows he can win in Cleveland. They will build around him and give him enough quality players so that he will always have the chance to go deep in the playoffs. Teams from larger markets may be able to bring in more big name players, but as the Kobe, Shaq, Gary Payton, and Karl Malone led Lakers proved, bringing in experienced big names to with young superstars doesn’t guarantee success. Lebron exiting Cleveland for a large market is today’s equivalent of quiting your day job and moving to Hollywood. Maybe you can make more money and become the most famous actor of all time, but more times than not you give up something that is good for the prospect of something incredible. How many times have you heard of an average guy dumping an attractive girl just because one of the upper echelon girls starts talking to him? In the end the guy always gives up a stable, healthy relationship for the chance of landing something unattainable. Lebron already has an incredibly stable and successful career path, why risk losing it for something that probably can not be reached.
- The Stern Factor-The NBA wants to promote Lebron. By staying in Cleveland, Lebron gives Stern the chance to promote him on so many levels. He can be promoted as the hometown hero, the local boy with loyalty, the savior to a struggling city, the angles are endless. Good things happen for you when you give Stern what he wants. If Lebron gives Stern the ability to promote the NBA as a feel good story, Stern will make it up by getting Lebron calls. Anyone who has watched this years playoffs knows that Stern can impact games. He basically has the refs in his back pocket, and if Lebron joins Stern’s team he will be blessed with fortunate calls for the rest of his career. Anyone who doubts Stern’s power, watch the “flagrant” fouls that got Ron Artest thrown out of the Lakers/Rockets series.
- The Underdog Theory-Who dislikes Cleveland? Cleveland has had a million heartbreaks and has been the but of jokes for years. Deep down, we all root for the underdog. We want Appalachian State to beat Michigan, and Chaminade to beat Virginia. Nobody followed Gonzaga or Davidson before they started knocking off traditional powers. Any team Lebron leaves Cleveland for would have to be in an extremely large market, and as a society we root against the large market teams. Teams that spend extravagantly and have traditionally won get as many bandwagon critics as fans. No matter what people say, Cleveland will never be seen as a traditional powerhouse, and will therefore always inherit the casual fan who wants to see the small guy win out.
- The Media Factor- The media is notoriously fickle. When someone is young and successful the media must stress his “good guy” qualities. We build people up so much that when anything happens to contradict their image, the tide immediately turns. Look at Alex Rodriguez. When he came into the league we tried to make him the poster boy for baseball. When he get hurt and changes teams we start to question him. Before we know it, there becomes a whole industry centered around A-Rod’s image, and every sports show runs a whole A-Rod segment. Obviously Rodriguez has made many mistakes, but if he hadn’t been so built up by the media do you really think we would be seeing pictures of him posing for a mirror on ESPN? If Lebron is smart, he would learn for A-Rod’s mistakes. Because he is such a promoted figure, anything he does is going to be analyzed way past the necessary extent. Leaving Cleveland is just feeding the sharks, and ultimately giving the media a reason to start hating him. There are only 2 things NBA players really need to know: 1. Don’t mess with Stern 2. Don’t mess with the media.
