Pardon My Bias

Almost 2 years ago, the San Diego Padres traded their ace, Jake Peavy, to the Chicago White Sox for 4 pitchers – Clayton Richard, Aaron Poreda, Dexter Carter and Adam Russell. It is now time to evaluate how this worked out for both teams.

San Diego Padres: Dexter Carter never made it out of the minor leagues and Adam Russell occasionally saw some relief pitching time during his 2-year tenure with San Diego, although neither were the big pieces to this trade. Clayton Richard has been a consistent starter for the Padres. Over the past 3 seasons he has gone 23 – 20 with an average ERA of 3.97. His best season was last year in which he went 14-9 with a career low ERA of 3.75. Although Richard has not been spectacular, he has provided a stable punch for the 3rd-4th guy in the starting rotation. It has also doesn’t help when your offense can barely score runs in your support. The final piece was Aaron Poreda, the main piece to this whole trade, who barely saw any time with the Padres. He mainly played in the minor leagues, where he wasn’t having too much success and just recently was designated for assignment, and therefore I am assuming his career with San Diego has ended. So the Padres traded their Cy-Young winning pitcher in the hopes of obtaining a quality pitcher in Clayton Richard and a shining prospect in Aaron Poreda, who they assumed (or hoped) would become a big-time arm. They ended up getting about half of what they hoped for.

Was Peavy Worth It? Photo courtesy of www.realfansrealtalk.com.

Chicago White Sox: The biggest issue for Chicago is that Peavy has had some injury issues. He started 17 games last season and had a so-so season, definitely not up to his Cy-Young standards. This season he has a nice 4-1 record but his ERA is on the higher end of his career range, but yet again he has been on and off with injuries. The White Sox were expecting to receive their new pitching ace and become a top contender, but injuries have faltered these plans. They are currently 5 games out of first place and therefore could still make a run and hopefully Peavy will be able to return to the starting role soon enough.

Neither team got what they were expecting. Strictly based on stats and reliability, Padres win. Richard has pitched better than Peavy and this could be due to the injury issues that Peavy has faced. The Padres traded away Peavy for financial reasons, yet they still haven’t gotten anywhere because they do not put money into getting offensive talent.

Until Peavy is able to consistently pitch at a high level for the White Sox, the Padres are the overall winner to this trade (even with the main piece, Poreda, being a complete bust).

The fight everyone is waiting for. Photo courtesy of iwatchpacquiao.com

Everyone who is a fan of boxing is waiting for one fight. It’s the one fight that can save a sport that is currently on its last life line. Boxing needs Mayweather – Pacquiao. It has been talked about for years, but one dispute has kept this dream matchup from happening – random blood and urine testing.

Random blood and urine testing is not a requirement in most states, but more of an Olympic style rule. Pacman refuses to take random blood and urine testing. He claims that Mayweather is accusing him of cheating and taking performance enhancing drugs.

“It’s not just Pacquiao, it’s sports, period,” Mayweather said. “If you look at sports in the Olympics, they’re cheating. Everyone is cheating. And I never once said Manny Pacquiao was cheating, only thing I said was this: Me and any other opponent I face must take the test.”

In the sports world today, doping and steroids have become more and more common. So why doesn’t Pacquiao just agree to the tests? What does he have to hide? If that will get us the fight of a lifetime, what is Pacquiao waiting for? I don’t think Pacquiao or Mayweather are afraid of each other, but why not take the step to prove that you are pound for pound the best fighter in the world? Instead we have Floyd Mayweather fighting Victor Ortiz.

Someone get this thing figured out, please.

The 2011 NBA draft is finally complete and the top 10 players picked looks a little something like this:

1) Kyrie Irving – Cleveland Cavaliers

2) Derrick Williams – Minnesota Timberwolves

3) Enes Kanter – Utah Jazz

4) Tristan Thompson – Cleveland Cavaliers

5) Jonas Valanciunas – Toronto Raptors

6) Jan Vesely – Washington Wizards

7) Bismack Biyombo – Charlotte Bobcats

8) Brandon Knight – Detroit Pistons

9) Kemba Walker – Charlotte Bobcats

10) Jimmer Fredette – Sacramento Kings

So now it is time to dive in and evaluate these selections. Which was the most confusing pick? Who will end up being the Rookie of the Year? And who will end up  being the biggest impact player in the long run out of these top 10?

Can Knight Mix Well With Stuckey? Photo courtesy of msn.foxsports.com.

The Confuser: I could go with Tristan Thompson but I was completely thrown off by the Piston’s selection of Brandon Knight. I understand that Rodney Stuckey could be moved to shooting guard but does that make any real sense? He doesn’t seem to have much range and remember that Chauncey Billups was traded in order to clear the way for Stuckey to become the highlighted point guard. Now all of a sudden the Pistons have a change of heart? At 6’4″, it may even be possible to start Knight at the second spot but a back court of Knight and Stuckey doesn’t seem to work in my mind. I do believe that Knight will end up being a good player, and I’d definitely take him over Stuckey but it is going to be interesting to see how this guard situation plays out. One thing is for sure, it will be fun to watch Knight along with Greg Monroe (both players that I liked a lot in college).

The Shining Rookie: There are many ways that I could go with this seeing that there is no clear cut “guy” in this year’s draft. I am not sure how many minutes Kemba Walker and Jimmer Fredette will get their rookie season, although Kemba will have the best chance out of the two to break into the starting lineup. Also not sure if Valanciunas will be playing in the NBA this year, otherwise he may be able to make a big impact for that Raptor team. I wonder if that pick means that they are giving up on Ed Davis after just one year? So now the Rookie of the Year choice comes down to the one of the top two picks or Ricky Rubio. The Timberwolves are a mess and therefore unless they figure their crap out, I do not think either Williams or Rubio will make a massive impact the first year. Williams has the most star power out of all players in this draft but he has Michael Beasley and Kevin Love ahead of him so, tough luck. So the rookie that will shine will be Mr. Kyrie Irving. Cavaliers are stacked at the point guard position, but if you take a point guard with the first overall pick, you better play him.

Kemba Has Always Been a Winner. Photo courtesy of nydailynews.com.

The Long-Term Star:  So who will end up being the better player 6-7 years from now? I am going to go with Kemba Walker, strictly because of where he landed. D.J. Augustin is not the Bobcat’s long-term solution and they do not have a legit scorer on that team. Kemba has proven that he is a winner and that he can score in bunches, something that Charlotte needs. They will of course have to build around him but I believe that he has been put in the best position to succeed. By the way, is it just me or does Kemba look like a mix of John Wall and Dwyane Wade? Think about it.

If you were like me and follow the NHL, even if you did so only a bit, you had to experience the incredible shock of just Philadelphia just acting insane. And frankly, while it may be harsh, the Flyers were just that. In one afternoon, seemingly out of the blue, the Flyers traded their captain, the versatile two-way centerman Mike Richards, and their 40 goal scorer Jeff Carter out of town. Even more incredible was the fact that both young players were under contract until the next decade in Philadelphia. While the Flyers did have depth down the middle, to give up two cornerstone centers like that was shocking. And did they get better because of the trade? General Manager Paul Holmgren only said “different”. Not exactly a confidence builder when the guy who engineered the trades isn’t exactly pleased.

Carter and Richards were both pegged to be the cornerstones of the Flyers, and now both wind up absent in one afternoon. Photo courtesy of sportsnet.ca

As for the returns Philadelphia pulled in a decent haul. Richards was sent out to Los Angeles for their top prospect, Brayden Schenn, and Wayne Simmonds along with a second round draft pick next year. Carter went to Columbus and fetched Jakub Voracek along with a first and second round pick this year. Phily certainly got younger and were able to sign Ilya Bryzgalov, the netminder they so highly coveted, which was the main purpose of sending out two of the faces of the franchise. While Bryzgalov does bring the needed stability in goal, the interesting question is if the Flyers are actually better. Just a year ago they were in the finals, and this year they were riding high in the east before succumbing to the Bruins, this year’s champions.

Schenn could be another Richards or even Carter in a few years, and Simmonds and Voracek definitely add size to the wings, but this was a team on the verge of being champions now. Instead the Flyers will be relying on Danny Brier to carry the load in center, and hope that Claude Giroux can carry on his success next year at the pivot as well. Not to mention the Flyers will be losing the leadership and defensive ability of Richards, especially on the penalty kill. Yet all of this was for a goalie. Was it just me or wasn’t Sergei Bobrovsky slated to be the Flyers’ goalie of the future only a short time ago? And wasn’t he also living up to the hype as well? Maybe I missed something but Bryzgalov hasn’t screamed success either seeing how he got torched two years running now in the first round of the playoffs.

As for leadership…Richards did face a lot of scrutiny through the league for being a head hunter, and in Phily for not taking control. Now the team belongs to Chris Pronger who is 37, coming off surgeries, and is widely hated throughout the league. He can certainly lead, but will he be even playing?

As for the other two teams, Columbus strongly appears to have realized that they were not big on this year’s draft pool and were willing to opt out on the most part and get Carter. Carter is more of a scorer as is Nash, but with two on the top line I’m pretty sure the Blue Jackets can make something work. The Kings gave up a proven tough winger, and their most prized prospect in Schenn but they essentially have what they hoped Schenn could be: Mike Richards, a defensively sound tough center with great offensive skills as well. Giving up a possible and a young third liner for a proven commodity they had so desperately wanted makes sense. Both teams got better, and it didn’t kill their future. Unlike Philadelphia who lost a lot, and are now hamstringed to a goalie on the wrong side of thirty who’s save percentage last year was only marginally higher than that of their rookie goaltender. Yeah, good luck with that Phily. At least Holmgren can blame Ed Snider for forcing the move.

Right after the NBA Draft Lottery, I wrote an article on what I believe the Cleveland Cavaliers should do in the draft. The 2011 draft is now a few days away and it is once again time to figure out how it will play out. I’ve said it before and will say it again, I love Kyrie Irving! I picked Duke to win it all solely on the fact that he was coming back from injury. The top four picks are the only ones that I am going to focus on because that is where it is really interesting. The order, as of right now, is:

1) Cleveland Cavaliers

2) Minnesota Timberwolves

3) Utah Jazz

4) Cleveland Cavaliers

The number 1 pick will be? Photo courtesy of sports.espn.go.com.

So we first start with what Cleveland should do at the number 1 spot. I love Kyrie Irving, therefore I truly believe that the Cavaliers should pick Derrick Williams. Wait what!!!??? Yup, just like I said in my previous post, I think Cleveland is better off with Williams. This doesn’t have anything to do with who the better player is, it is strictly strategical. This will leave Minnesota in a position to either pick a point guard or trade the pick. When it comes to David Kahn, anything is possible. Luckily there have been many trade rumors with the Timberwolves. There has been the option of trading Pau Gasol for Kevin Love and the 2nd pick or maybe even Andrew Bynum and Lamar Odom for Love and the 2nd pick. I doubt this will actually happen. It is more likely that Minny will trade back with Utah for the 3rd pick and either the 12th pick or a future pick. Utah has shown interest in getting a point guard so this would make some sense.

If this does happen (who knows?), Utah will pick Irving and this will leave Minnesota in the 3rd spot with the option of once again taking a point guard OR a center in Enes Kanter. Now I’m hoping they end up taking Kanter and this leaves Brandon Knight to go 4th to the Cleveland Cavaliers. We are now at my original scenario from a month ago and I can smile! So I am going to cross my fingers and hope that this is what happens but you can never know with the Cavaliers and David Kahn.

What I recommend that you do to get more draft scenarios is check out Bill Simmons’ podcast on the NBA Draft. I’m glad to say that he somewhat believes that same thing that I do…Williams and Knight to Cleveland, let’s do this thang!

Rory McIlroy is the future of golf. Photo courtesy of imageworldblog.blogspot.com

Ladies and Gentlemen, the future is here. Rory McIlroy is on the verge of being golf’s next superstar. No, he is not the richest athlete in the world. No he does not have more sponsorships than any other athlete. No, he does not wear red on Sundays. Rory McIlroy is not Tiger Woods, but he is golf’s shining star. After reading the post from my fellow writer Anand Patel, saying that golf is not the same without Tiger Woods, I had to write this to urge him and other casual watchers of golf to watch Rory McIlroy. Currently, Rory McIlroy has a 6 shot lead going into the 3^rd round of the US Open, and as of late he has played some exceptional golf. Let’s start from the beginning though.

McIlroy is only 22 years old. Let me repeat, Rory McIlroy is only 22 years old. He began his professional career in 2007. He played in a few European Tour tournaments, catching the eyes of a few, most notably Tiger Woods. Woods invited McIlroy to play in the 2007 Target World Challenge, but McIlroy declined due to conflicting interest of the European Open during the same dates. McIlroy finished 2008 in the top 100 rankings and 36^th on the European Tour Order of Merit.

In November 2008, Rory finished second in the UBS Hong Kong Open, which earned him his highest world ranking position of 50. He is the youngest player ever to make the top 50. He finished 2008 39^th in the world, earning him an invitation to the most coveted tournament – The Masters. He earned is first professional win when he won the Dubai Desert Classic in February 2009.

McIlroy first gained his true fame to the casual golf audience when he claimed the lead at the Masters this year. He carried the lead through the first three rounds with -12, and 4 shot lead. Unfortunately, Rory suffered a horrible collapse on the final day shooting an 80. It was a crushing blow to what had been a brilliant 3 rounds of golf. Many questioned if this would affect McIlroy the rest of the season. After all, he is so young, and to suffer an embarrassment that he had could be shattering.

McIlroy responded by again taking a big lead in the US Open. It is yet to be seen if he can maintain the lead this time, but I am definitely cheering for him. McIlroy has a humbling personality, a great golf game, and a spark of greatness. He may not have all the flare that Tiger does/did, but it’s time for us to move on. Tiger was great, the key word being great. Unfortunately, I would argue that his poor choices cost him his career. Add injury and age with his circumstance, and we will never see the same Tiger Woods again. Rory McIlroy is the future, lets embrace it.

The 2011 U.S. Open is up and going and after day 2, Rory McIlroy is 6 shots ahead of the pack. After his meltdown at the Masters, many wondered if he could strike back at full force…so far, so good. But this article has nothing to do with Rory McIlroy or any other U.S. Open player as a matter of fact. It has to do with the one man who isn’t even playing this weekend, Tiger Woods. I am not a huge follower of golf but I know the basics and occasionally hit the driving range and would consider myself a casual golf spectator. Or at least I used to be.

Golf Needs Tiger. Photo courtesy of www.nydailynews.com.

I have not watched one bit of this U.S. Open and I am not surprised. Ever since Tiger’s incident I have been following very carefully, hoping to see the tournament in which he finally comes back to life. I want to see him succeed and pay attention to golf because I am waiting for his big moment. I watch the tournaments or stay updated through online scoreboards just to see how well Tiger is doing. I am hooked, until it is obvious that Tiger has no chance. When I see Tiger in the top 10 I get that feeling…maybe this is the tournament. Maybe Tiger is finally ready to shut everybody up.

Due to injury Tiger Woods is not partaking in the 2011 U.S. Open and guess what, I am not watching or paying attention. Yes, the regular golf enthusiast will watch no matter what but I am no regular enthusiast. I am just a guy who enjoys golf and occasionally doesn’t mind watching it either. I am the guy who specifically tunes in just to watch Tiger Woods and to see how he is doing. I am the guy who is very similar to a large portion of the rest of the American people…the people who only watch golf for Tiger Woods.

Sorry LeBron! Photo courtesy of sportscrack.blogspot.com.

• (309) 581-5766. This is LeBron James’ cellphone number but don’t bother calling since he’s not getting any rings
• For all the guys that do not want to get married, just pledge to not get a ring until LeBron does…should be a while
• LeBron James’ two least favorite movies: The Ring and The Maverick
• The last time LeBron earned a ring was when his Xbox 360 got the ring of death
• LeBron James and Charlie Sheen do not get along because Charlie keeps saying “winning” and LeBron has no idea what that means
• Although LeBron is a great athlete, there are a few things that he will never put his hand into…a boxing ring, a wrestling ring and most of all, a championship ring
• LeBron James claims to never have seen ‘The Lord of the Rings’ but we know that’s a lie…everyone knows who Michael Jordan is

Comment below with some more funny and original LeBron James lines!

Written by: JDS

The Boston Bruins celebrate their first Cup since 1972. Photo courtesy of nhl.com

The first goal did it again for the Canucks, where they just couldn’t pull themselves together for any sort of comeback. Not to take anything away from Tim Thomas of course who completely deserved (and I called for winning) the Conn Smythe award. For Boston, this is their first championship in nearly forty years making them another original six team who got their hands on the Stanley Cup after an excessive drought. Not that their drought was as bad as Chicago’s who hadn’t won since Napoleon was still leading France, or the Rangers who hadn’t won since electricity was discovered, but this was a nice win for Boston (and that will be the only time I ever write such a thing about any Boston team).

Vancouver will have to wait yet again for the franchise's first Cup in its history. Photo courtesy of bleacherreport.com

As for Vancouver, they simply showed why they cannot be in the Stanley Cup finals ever. It was as if the Lakers had won, and Los Angeles all came out, instead of the drunken mob and myself. That wasn’t too unexpected either really, as back in 1994 when Vancouver lost, half of British Columbia burned to the ground then also. And Canuck fans can write some angry letters to a couple of people, i.e. Roberto Luongo, the Sedin Twins, and Aaron Rome. Rome gets blasted for taking down Nathan Horton. It was a cheap hit, and it took Rome out of the series along with Horton. While the tradeoff in talent is ok, it managed to piss off the Bruins something royal, and left Vancouver with the option of trying Keith Ballard again or a rookie, seeing how originally Dan Hamhuis got injured which was already causing issues in defensive depth for the Canucks. Simply stated, Ballard was awful and Tanev was invisible. Boston meanwhile got fired up at home, and it really gave the players a rallying point. Someone should have pointed out that mentality to Vancouver and the Hamhuis injury.

Then there were the choke artists. The Sedins had probably the most epic disappearing act I have witnessed in recent years (outside of San Jose) as they were held to a combined total of five points between them in the series. And last year’s MVP of the regular season, captain Henrik, had only one. Not to mention the -12 rating between them also in the series, including the horrendous game seven performances where both Sedins were on the ice for each goal scored by the Bruins. If these are supposed to be your top guys, maybe someone should send them the memo that the playoffs go for four series and not three. It is absolutely remarkable where two players dismantle a team in the conference finals and yet disappear entirely one round later. But they weren’t alone. Ryan Kesler had only one point and went -6, the defense overall for the Canucks evaporated in the finals, and of course there was Luongo.

Vancouver couldn't keep things together and were routed once more in the series, 4-0. Photo courtesy of nhl.com

Roberto had been incredible at home, terrible on the road, and a complete mystery really as to why. The simple fact of the matter was just the mentality. And it wasn’t the home crowd inspiring him more. He had two fluke goals against him in game three and the entire Canucks squad just gave up. But it grew to be a mental issue for Luongo, knowing any miscue could result in an entire confidence collapse for his team. It got to him in game four and the first mistake snowballed, whereas in game five he was solid throughout, much like in games one and two. Game six was a mirror image of game four of a solid performance at first until the first one went in. His confidence went out along with his team’s. It was the same story for every game, where Vancouver played very well while the game was scoreless, or even when they knew they could score but had coughed up a lead (a la game two). Game seven was just that. Fine while squared, and then the wheels came off for the entire team after the first goal. Luongo is the easy culprit, and he does get some blame without a doubt, but the meltdowns were team wide. It just started with Luongo even though the first meltdown in game three wasn’t even his doing. But it got to him, all the way to game seven after the first goal where it was a bang-bang play where Henrick Sedin was standing around, screening his own goalie and Luongo didn’t kick out. Not entirely Luongo’s doing, but that didn’t stop him from pushing the puck into his own net for the second goal.

Big Z very well may eat the Stanley Cup. Photo courtesy of nhl.com

But the Bruins…Tim Thomas received all his accolades given to him (just like Gary Bettman deserved his “ovation”) after playing out of his mind entirely for the series, and being an absolute wall when it mattered most, in the three game sevens that the Bruins faced. Mark Recchi goes out in a huge blaze of glory, while Brad Marchand is seeing his career unfold in front of himself in the best possible way after playing like the best pest in the league (sorry Burrrows). A rookie with absolute clutch goals and managed to get under his opponents’ skin like a veteran Sean Avery. Patrice Bergeron came up huge with two goals as well, enacting some of the best revenge imaginable after getting bit back at the start of the finals. The Bruins defense played well in lockdown mode led by the mammoth Zdeno Chara (who easily becomes the biggest captain to win a Stanley Cup and first Neanderthal as well, making it a very good year for them seeing how Dirk Nowitzki won a NBA championship also), feeding off of Thomas’s confidence just like how Vancouver starved from a lack thereof and their netminder. While it could be very easy to say that Vancouver lost the finals, with the disappearances of big players and mental collapsing, Boston just as much won it however.

Tim Thomas has bounced around a bit in his career with various teams and various amounts of playing time, but now has a Stanley Cup and Conn Smythe award. Photo courtesy of sltrib.com

They won big more often than not and their losses were all tightly contested one goal games, showing they deserved the Cup inequitably. They had superb goaltending, solid defense, an unrelenting physical style, and the offensive tenacity throughout that Vancouver just wound up lacking at the crucial points. Coach Claude Julien had a huge turnaround, from trailing the Canadians 2-0 and having to go to Montreal, to adjusting to deal with the offensive juggernaut in Tampa, running down the Flyers, and keeping his group composed and fired up against the top team in the league.

So while Vancouver can cry and riot while their team tries to figure out what all went wrong waiting for next season, Boston can celebrate this one. They earned it.

Lebron disappeared in the 4th quarters. Photo courtesy of bleacherreport.com

The NBA season came to end on Sunday evening with the underdog Dallas Mavericks capturing the title over the favorite Miami Heat. Still, the story was more about the Heat losing to the Mavericks than it was ever about the Mavericks defeating the Heat. The team effort that the Mavericks put into their execution was always overlooked by the failures of the Heat, most notably Lebron James.

These are certainly trying times in South Beach. The expectations were set by none other than the Big 3 themselves. Unfortunately, their parade came in September instead of June. In fact, they started their era with, “not 1, not 2, not 3, not 4, not 5, not 6, not 7,” but 0 rings. What was supposed to be a yearlong celebration (or decade or era or something) ended with blank faces from Lebron and Wade and Chris Bosh on his knees crying.

Now to say that Miami accomplished nothing this season would not be justified either. They certainly went through the ups and downs that all teams do, but of course theirs were highlighted more. Reporters were camped in Miami all season long to basically form a team diary. In the end, Miami did prevail and had a successful first season. They dominated the Sixers in the first round, buried the aging Celtics in 5 (which they celebrated like they won the Larry O’brien Trophy), and cleaned up league MVP Derrick Rose and the Chicago Bulls. It looked like the Heat were destined to win the Finals. Until it all came crashing down.

Lebron celebrating early. Photo courtesy of bleacherreport.com

The same things that had caused Miami to struggle during the season were resurfacing during the Finals, and would ultimately push them to defeat. It all started in Game 2 after Dwayne Wade hit a big 3-pointer from the corner near the Dallas bench, and Lebron felt the need to come over and bump a few shoulders, give some daps, and nod his head all the way up the sideline. Instead of going back to the huddle, giving Wade his props there, they decide to celebrate early in front of the Mavs bench. Perhaps if they did that in a humble manner, it wouldn’t have fired up Jason Terry, Dirk Nowitzki, and the rest of the Mavericks. Lebron fueled the Mavs fire, which turned out to be an inferno that not even the Heat could handle. Perhaps, they would have gone to Dallas in charge of the series 2-0 instead of tied 1-1. That is all speculation after all, but would it have hurt Lebron James to just be humble?

The next issue arose in the 4^th quarter. Lebron James was unable to close out ball games. He put up a big fat 0 in the last 5 minutes of the ball game, compared to Dirk Nowitzki’s 26 points in clutch time. It was almost like a disappearing act, and it gained as much attention as it did because Lebron looked invincible in the previous rounds. No one was able to doubt that Lebron was the best player in the NBA during the first three rounds. Once the Finals came around, Lebron turned into Scottie Pippen more than he did Michael Jordan (not that Lebron was or ever should be compared to MJ in the first place).

This is the issue that everyone had when the Big 3 was put together, two of them were too similar of players to coexist and be productive with each other.  Could one even be the Scottie to the other’s Jordan? Do the two players even compare to Scottie and Jordan? To answer the question simply—no. Both Wade and James need the ball in their hands to create offense. Both are much better slashers than they are jump shooters.  So when it comes down the 4^th quarter, who gets the ball? Does Spoelstra have a say in who he’s running the offense through, or is it just whichever guy is feeling it that night? How can Lebron or Wade assert themselves when the other has taken over the game offensively? The obvious answer would be defensively, but Jason Terry began to light Lebron James up as the series progressed. James declined both offensively and defensively as the series went on. To put it simply, he disappeared, and took very little blame for it.

Photo courtesy of eastfieldnews.com

After it was all over, it was hinted in the postgame coverage by Magic Johnson that it’s time for James to develop a new part of his game this summer and learn how to play in the post. The only problem with that is will a guy who has never conformed to anyone else’s system or ideas really buy into this? Is Lebron James really willing to do whatever it takes to win? Many could argue if that was the case, he never would have left Cleveland. He wouldn’t have tried to take a “shortcut” as bitter owner Dan Gilbert phrased in a tweet after game 6. So why would Lebron change now? Will this loss really actually humble him? Or will he continue on playing the same way he did when the Cavs were swept in 2006 by the Spurs?

The playoffs are full of great teams with great players. It is where superstars become legends. It is where All Stars become champions. But it is all a process. Each great player has their epic battles, and there is no free ride to a championship. But if you want to be the star of your team, the responsibility always rests square on your shoulders. Lebron needed to take that blame. He needed to do it to make everyone believe that he was committed, even if the fault was not all his. When the Oklahoma City Thunder were eliminated by the Dallas Mavericks, Kevin Durant said, “I let the whole city down.”  Everyone knew it was not solely Durant’s fault, but he knew it was his team and he took responsibility. In the same scenario, Lebron needed to say he let his teammates down, because no matter how well he played the first three quarters, he did let them down in the 4^th. Instead Lebron felt the need to address his haters:

“At the end of the day, all the people that were rooting for me to fail … at the end of the day, tomorrow they have to wake up and have the same life that [they had] before they woke up today. They got the same personal problems they had today. And I’m going to continue to live the way I want to live and continue to do the things I want to do.”

Whether or not James meant that he doesn’t care what you think about him, his entire approach was wrong. He should have been humble and said that I take responsibility for this loss. He started his summer the same way his summer ended, a half hour TV special that showed to the world that he had no humility for the city of Cleveland for the latter, and no humility for the letdown he put his team through in the former. As much as Lebron’s career changed, one thing didn’t—his humility. Prove to the people that it’s more than just about you Lebron, just once.

This is just an opinion…so please, Pardon My Bias.