LeBron James vs NBA Championship
Would you rather watch the Cleveland basketball superstar play for the Cavaliers or the team take the trophy?
LeBron James and his unmatched NBA statistics are making Cleveland sports fans happy. One fan would sacrifice an NBA championship to keep LeBron in Cleveland.
LeBron James is the finest NBA basketball player on the planet earth and a major celebrity in Cleveland and all over the world; there's no disputing this. Okay, now that we have that out of the way, let's get at the crux of a very interesting argument I recently had with my brother.
As Brothers often do, we argue a lot - not the childish arguments over whether he can tag along with me and my friends. We're adults, now, and we have big boy arguments. You know the type, Manny Ramirez is a better hitter than Jim Thome , and my golf game is far superior to yours.
Being from Cleveland, we're both Cavaliers fans and huge LeBron James supporters. Recently, though, we had a pretty heated argument involving the NBA superstar, James' statistics and his celebrity.
Now, I'm not entirely certain how this debate began, but here's how it goes. For some strange reason, my brother came down on LeBron, saying James will probably be gone from Cleveland, before the Cavaliers ever win an NBA championship.
"Big deal," I said, matter-of-factly. "As long as LeBron is here, we get to watch the greatest player in the NBA night in and night out, and we can claim him as ours." As if James is our own private celebrity that no one else can watch or enjoy.
This infuriated my brother. "You're telling me, you don't care about winning an NBA championship?" he growled.
"You tell me this," I shot back, knowing full well it's improper to answer a question with a question, "would you rather win a couple of NBA titles in the next few years, minus LeBron James, or win none with LeBron?"
He chose the NBA championship banners and was shocked that I would have it the other way. Some might say I'm not competitive or that I don't care about winning. This is absolutely untrue. In fact, I've been accused of being overly competitive, and I've always said I hate to lose more than I like to win. (Actually, Jimmy Connors said that, but I would have said it, if he hadn't said it first.)
The thing is, I just love LeBron James. No, not in that way; I'm just thrilled to have a legitimate NBA star and a true sports celebrity in Cleveland. There's not a player alive who can touch LeBron James' statistics, his incredible moves and his remarkable personality. He's flamboyant on the basketball court but humble off of it.
Cleveland sports fans haven't seen the likes of LeBron since Jim Brown. Not even the aforementioned Ramirez or Thome ever held the hearts of Clevelanders as tightly as does the inimitable LeBron James.
So, as ridiculous as it may seem to many Cleveland sports fans, starving for any sort of title, I would gladly sacrifice an NBA championship to keep LeBron James, his super statistics, sweet celebrity and uncanny presence in Cleveland. I'm happy just to see him wearing a Cleveland Cavaliers uniform.
As far as the argument between my brother and me, like always, it remains unsettled. Oh well, I'll get him on the golf course.
