On December 2, 2010, LeBron James made his return to Cleveland after deciding to take his talents to South Beach and join the Miami Heat. The second he walked out, the arena was filled with boos, and it would stay that way for the entire game.
This past summer, James decided to leave the Heat and go back to the Cleveland Cavaliers. And on Christmas Day, he will be making his highly anticipated return to Miami. This game will be nationally televised, and fans around the NBA will be eager to see how Heat fans react once James steps foot on the floor. But in reality, should Heat fans boo James?
When James decided to go to Miami in 2010 to join Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, his main goal was to bring championships to the Heat organization. And quite frankly, he was able to accomplish that goal. James was with the Miami Heat for four years; and every year, he was able to lead the Heat to an NBA Finals appearance. Just let that sink in for a second; four straight appearances in the NBA Finals. This is an accomplishment in itself, even if they didn’t win the title every year. Only two other teams have been able to do that, so it’s easy to tell how special this run was for the Heat. Out of the four years the Heat were in the NBA Finals, they were able to bring home a championship twice. With them coming oh so close to a three-peat, it simply wasn’t meant to be.
After the Heat lost in last year’s Finals against the Spurs, it was clear that there was some doubt about James coming back long-term. During the NBA free agency period, many sources pointed to him returning home to Cleveland. But when that happened there really wasn’t the same outrage from the Heat fans that had been seen from Cavaliers fans in 2010. Sure, there were upset fans, but they didn’t go burn his jersey and cut down his poster as was done in Cleveland in 2010.
One thing that we saw from James is that he handled this much differently than he had four years earlier. When he left Cleveland, he went out on national television and announced his decision without telling anyone in the organization. But when he left Miami, he simply wrote a letter for SI and put an Instagram post that simply stated “I’m coming home.” That made it a little easier for Heat fans to accept that he left. To be honest, they should be okay with the fact that he simply wanted to go home. And as a Heat fan myself, that is why it wasn’t hard to get over James leaving.
The Miami Heat showed that they are a first-class organization by announcing that they will be showing a video tribute for James before the game starts. When he first walks out onto the court, expect to hear some mixed reactions. There will be mainly cheers during the video tribute, but all boos once he is announced in the starting lineup.
Overall, Miami Heat fans need to show their appreciation for James. He was able to take them to a place that they’ve only been to once before he was there. He still has a great relationship with Dwyane Wade, and even Wade feels that they should appreciate him when he returns. But once the ball game starts, expect to see a physical battle and the Heat giving the Cavs their best shot. It’s going to be a great game, and you better be glued to your television for this game.
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