http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news;_yl...yhoo&type=lgns
ORLANDO – Head down and shoulders slumped, LeBron James(notes) headed off the court as the Orlando Magic streamers shot off above him.
Dwight Howard(notes) was hugging Hedo Turkoglu(notes), dreams of Beating L.A. dancing in their heads. James wasn’t bothering to stick around to shake hands, offer congratulations or pretend there was a bright side to the Magic ousting his Cleveland Cavaliers from the East finals with a 103-90 victory in Game 6.
James was off the floor before the confetti could hit his shoulders.
He later dressed in silence in a corner of the locker room then put on some gold, oversized headphones and headed for the door. Normally one of the last to leave, he was now one of the first. With anger and frustration evident in each step, he charged through the back halls of Amway Arena without greeting anyone, got on the team bus and soon was off to the airport.
There was no looking for his mother, Gloria. There was no talking with Nike executives. And forget addressing fans and media – Mo Williams(notes) was left to answer for the defeat.
LeBron was gone. The King was silent.
The fallout from this defeat will echo loudly all summer, though, the pressure mounting on Cavs general manager Danny Ferry.
Whether this was James’ ultra-compe iveness overwhelming his emotions or a sign of his frustration with a front office that in six seasons has failed to give him the supporting cast capable of winning a championship remains to be seen.
LeBron James, 24, is a free agent after next season and while he’s never said he would leave Cleveland, he’s never said he wouldn’t. As such, this move – his every move, actually – will be analyzed as the psyche of a championship-starved city hangs in the balance.
James doesn’t need a bigger market to be a global icon (a now-doomed Nike puppet advertising campaign is proof of that). And he doesn’t seem to possess the personality that covets the bright lights of New York or L.A. (he still lives near Akron and mostly hangs out with high school buddies or his longtime girlfriend and two young children).
He may need to leave to win a championship, though.
“Going into the playoffs we were confident that we were going to be in the NBA Finals and we were confident that we were going to win it,” Williams said. “I can understand [James’] disappointment because I’m feeling the same disappointment.”
There’s little sense in criticizing James for not speaking with the media Saturday – it’s the only thing he didn’t do in this series. He averaged 38.5 points, 8.3 rebounds and 8.0 assists. He offered leadership and defense. He saved Game 2 with an all-timer of a buzzer-beater.
And it wasn’t even close to enough.
Cleveland players said James did speak to them briefly in the stunned locker room and, according to Daniel Gibson(notes), said “we just need to keep working.” It was clear to everyone, however, he was taking this defeat hard.
A 66-win regular season left the Cavs optimistic they had found the parts for a championship, but deep in the playoffs, where intensity is matched and matchups get intense, the limitations are clear.
The Cavs were swept in the 2007 Finals and now have failed to get out of the East the last two seasons.
In this game, from the time the Magic trotted out the booming voice of 7-year-old Gina Marie Incandela for the national anthem to a fourth quarter filled with chants of “MVP” and “Beat L.A.,” it wasn’t so much a contest as a 2½-hour pep rally for the Finals.
All of Cleveland’s recurring problems kept accruing. Howard had 40 points and 14 rebounds as he tore through the not-prime-time frontcourt of Anderson Varejao(notes) and Zydrunas Ilgauskas(notes). Williams had 17 point, but showed in this series he isn’t ready to be this generation’s Scottie Pippen.
The entire bench combined for just 10 points and five rebounds. Other than James, the roster lacked the size and athletic ability to deal with perimeter threats Rashard Lewis(notes) and Rafer Alston(notes).
Cleveland had the best player in this series. Orlando had the next four.
“I think this team is right there,” Williams said. “We just have to do a little bit more.”
What they have to do is get a little bit more. Despite boasting one of the highest payrolls in the league and having a half-dozen years to put together the roster, the Cavs are still a player or two away. Where Ferry finds them is the question.
He has only the midlevel salary-cap exception to spend on free agents. The Cavs discussed acquiring Shaquille O’Neal(notes) at the trade deadline, but the Phoenix Suns balked at taking back Ben Wallace(notes). The Cavs have some pieces, but no margin for error on anything less than the perfect move.
It begins with the need for a big man because it’s not like the 23-year-old Howard is going anywhere. The Magic are no fluke, they’re more than capable of beating the Lakers.
“How many games could [Cleveland] win without LeBron James?” Jerry West asked rhetorically to Reuters. By way of comparison, when Michael Jordan skipped the 1993-94 season to play baseball, the remaining Chicago Bulls won 55. West likely doubts the non-LeBron Cavs would get to 40.
In the same interview, West declared James a superior player to Kobe Bryant(notes).
Yet it is Kobe’s team, rebuilt on the fly after a stretch of mediocrity from 2005-07 that will host Game 1 of the Finals on Thursday. The Lakers will meet the Magic, who have surrounded their young star, Howard, with the perfect complimentary parts.
Meanwhile LeBron waits. He’s never publicly criticized a teammate, coach or front-office decision. And he didn’t Saturday.
Maybe Gloria James taught him that if you don’t have anything nice to say, then it’s best to say nothing at all. Just head for the bus, the booming beats of the headphones droning out the questions about the immediate past and the long-term future.
I thought there was a 99% chance of James returning before his team laid an egg and he looked pissed. I think it's 50/50 now. Still a whole summer, though. Championship, or James is heading to a big market. Nets could use him. They always seem to have the emptiest stands.
When did Jerry West say this?
Lebron just needs to work on his jumper and if he can get a consistent jumper then really there is no comparison to Kobe at all.
Unless they land Bosh or Amare they aint winning a championship next year. If they don't win a championship he's gong to NY where he might find either Bosh or Amare.
If Lebron was a free agent after this season and the Spurs had their cap room I think he'd have a way better shot playing with Tim and Tony rather than either Bosh or Amare. Amare is a crap defender and Bosh is OK, but not All-Nba level D is he?. What makes you think he's going to win jack with either of them?
"LeBron was gone. The King was silent."
sons this ing "King" has got to stop .... the dude has never won . there are NO Kings in Cleveland!
I don't care who the supporting cast is, you pair LBJ who isn't even in his prime yet, with an all star big that is a legit second option, plus in the east. IMO they would compete for championships. Look what LBJ did with his current squad, add Bosh or Amare and they're at least in the finals playing compe ively. LMAO at all the Spur fans trying to make a case for LBJ to come to SA, makes absolutely no sense to go to a dying team in an even smaller market then Cleveland, it will never ever happen.
lmao at you completely sucking LBJ's 24/7. Good to see you take down the Witness sig though, you lemming.
son he is a front runner ... he can't help it.
one day he's for Lebron, the next day its Kobe. LOL funny how he removed that ridiculous "Witness" signature right after Lebron got his ass beat tonight.
The witness sig is a mock first of all. And please show me how I suck LBJ 24/7? I've made about two positive comments about him the whole time I've been on this board. He is a great player, so I admit that and now I'm sucking his ? Please.
WTF, I never took the witness sig off, if you quote the sig doesn't come up, ing morons. THE SIG IS A JOKE, FOR ALL THE HYPE.
son the sig still isn't up on your own post without the quote .... LOL .... 2 days ago you were riding King Crab's dong ... but now that he is finally out, you jumped off that bandwagon quicker than a Spurs fan running across the border.
Since when is "ultra-compe iveness" a word?
Dude look at every comment I've posted on this board, I ing hate the Cavs, I'm a huge Laker homer. I will admit LBJ is a great player but in no way am I a fan. The sig was meant to be a joke, because of all the LBJ hype. And I swear to god I haven't touched by profile at all. I have no clue why my sig is freaking out.
Mediagasm
lol son I was just breaking your balls a bit
Go look in the TMac thread where I posted ten minutes ago, my sig is working fine in that thread. I never touched my sig, and I'm in no way a LBJ fan. You've got me all wrong. Go look up all my posts, I ing hate the Cavs, and the LBJ hype fest but I'm man enough to admit he is a good player, unlike other Laker fans.
So what do you think about Jerry West saying he is a superior player to Kobe?
If you aren't just mocking me so you can bash me I'll answer. Truthfully I think he's right. LBJ is a better overall player then Kobe. To be honest I don't really care all that much about the whole Kobe vs. Lebron thing. I'm a Laker fan and the Lakers are a better team then the Cavs so who the better individual doesn't really matter. Now all the trolls will come out and bash me for sucking LBJ apparently 24/7 and being a frontrunner. Some ing assholes on this website, seriously.
No I wasn't mocking you. I was just asking you that because in your earlier posts it didn't seem like you thought much of Lebron. If you don't like him that is fair enough. Personally I really like Lebron's game, but yeah I can't say that I'm into all that stuff he does pre-game. I was just a little bit surprised to read what Jerry West said. I thought Jerry would stick with the Lakers player.
You're not going to hear me say I'd take Lebron over Tim Duncan. With Tim at his best no way and even now I would probably say no.
All of the Cavs bull antics pre game and all the out of this world love and bias LBJ gets from the media, BSPN in particular makes me hate him. But just his actual game itself, there is no denying he is the best player in the game and that once he gets a true second option he'll probably win rings. Not that I want to see it but it's just true. Well Duncan has won 4 rings and is one of the best big men ever so at this point I would agree with you on that.
Very true. Kobe at least could hit shots early on, but then he went to work each summer to really improve his shot. He worked his ass off on it, but I'd say he was already a decent shooter to begin with.
I think TP is someone that was not a great shooter though and has really improved his jumper quite a bit since he first came into the league. He'd be a more realistic example for James to look at because it can be done. Like you said though a lot of players just don't have that touch to be deadly shooters and never get there no matter how much they try to improve, but I think some players have broken that mold and really improved their jumpers from when they first started out in the NBA. I was very impressed with TP's jumper this season and if he had that in previous seasons against teams like LA he could have caused them even more problems.
I have never been a LeBron basher at all. I happen to think he is an amazing player, but I was very disappointed at his lack of class last night when the game was over. You can be compe ive all you want, but in the NBA when the series is over, you are gracious and mature and shake hands with the opponent- not after every game, but after the series is over you do- no matter how upset you are that you lost. It is called good sportsmanship and I was sad to see LBJ display none.
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