Ever since he was a high school phenom in the early 2000’s, LeBron James has been held to extremely high standards and media scrutiny. Whether it’s fair or not, he has always had to live up to the highest of expectations on and off the court. As a 31 year old NBA champion and superstar, James is expected to be one of the best, if not the best, leaders in sports. However, that’s not the case. The drama surrounding the Cavs this season has been nothing short of distracting, and much of that has to do with James’ public comments and inability to lead.
In the summer of 2014, after many signs of immaturity, most notably the infamous decision to leave Cleveland on live TV, a more mature LeBron James appeared ready to take on a new task – leading. Yes, by 2014 he had already won numerous MVP awards and championships, but he hadn’t taken on the role of a true, undisputed leader. Early on in his career, James was just a young, inexperienced player. Veterans like Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Mo Williams, and even Shaquille O’Neal were brought to the Cavs to help provide veteran leadership. In Miami, James wasn’t the player who others looked up to as a proven champion, someone who they must learn from in order to be a winner. In fact, he was the exact opposite. James joined the Heat so that he could learn from proven champions like Dwyane Wade, Pat Riley, and later on Ray Allen.
Now in Cleveland, James is undoubtedly that proven champion, the one who must lead by example and instill a championship mindset into his teammates, and he knows that. Two summers ago, he signed with the Cavs knowing that now it’s his turn to be the leader of inexperienced, young, and talented players. As much pressure as there was for James to win in Miami, the pressure he’s experiencing in Cleveland is completely different and arguably just as high. James’ career as a Cavalier will never be complete until he brings a championship to Cleveland, and so far, despite stellar performances in the standings and the stat sheets, he’s doing a poor job with the intangibles, the important aspects of basketball that go beyond the numbers.
Throughout the past year and a half, LeBron James undermined his former head coach David Blatt time and time again. There have been multiple instances in which he has shown poor body language – or in this case verbal language – whether it be a result of his displeasure with teammates, himself, or his coach. Remember game four of last year’s Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Bulls? Sure, James hit a clutch buzzer beater to tie the series at 2-2, but do you remember what he had to say to reporters afterwards?
“To be honest, the play that was drawn up, I scratched it. And I just told coach, ‘Just give me the ball.'”
It isn’t uncommon for superstar players to change up plays on the fly based on how the defense is set up, but to completely disregard and ignore what Coach Blatt had to say while still in the huddle? James is basically saying, “Screw you coach, this play is trash. Just give me the ball,” which sends a message to his teammates that he doesn’t have all that much respect for their coach. If LeBron James doesn’t respect the coach, then why should the rest of his teammates? They’re supposed to follow his lead, right?
Also, while we’re still on the topic of coaches, it’s tough to believe that James played as little of a role in the Blatt firing and Tyronn Lue hiring as the Cavs make it seem like. At the time that GM David Griffin made the coaching change, stories came out that the Cleveland locker room, most notably James, had been discreetly asking then assistant coach Tyronn Lue for advice more often than they would approach Blatt. James’ camp has made it clear that the twelve time All-Star has always had a stronger preference for Lue than he had for Blatt, which gives off the feeling that maybe James spearheaded this anti-Blatt movement. No one will truly know what happened behind the scenes amongst the Cavaliers players, but at the very least, LeBron James has his name right in the middle of this coaching controversy, something you don’t normally see with the all-time great leaders in sports.
On the court, James has formed a big three with Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love, two superstars who weren’t used to such little attention on the offensive end prior to the beginning of last season. To say they’ve blended well would be too generous, but it would also be too harsh to claim that it’s been a disaster. Love doesn’t seem to fit in well with this offense, and there are many times that Tristan Thompson is the more valuable power forward on the floor. He’s been subject to plenty of trade rumors, and his stay in Cleveland might reach its expiration date before next season. As for Irving, he’s a ball dominant point guard who’s struggled to be effective without the ball in his hands. He and Love both appear to be the types of players who can put up awesome fantasy lines and highlight reels for bad teams, but when it comes time to lock in and contribute to a championship team, they aren’t quite there yet. By no means is that all LeBron James’ fault, but he returned to Cleveland knowing that the task would be to instill a championship mindset and mold these inexperienced players into winners. As of now, James is yet to do so with the two most important players on the roster besides himself.
Within the past few months, James’ comments to the media and antics on social media have raised many questions about his commitment to his current teammates and the Cavs organization. His decision to unfollow the Cavs on Twitter, which he claims is part of his preparation for the playoffs, doesn’t look too hot in the eyes of the public. In addition, James’ visit to Miami to workout with friend and ex-teammate Dwyane Wade didn’t exactly send optimistic signals to those in Cleveland either, and his remarks to the media about the situation might have even been worse than the trip itself. When asked if he understands why Cavs fans may be upset about it, James responded with, “Yeah. I don’t care.” Ouch.
More recently, the King suggested that the idea of him playing alongside Dwyane Wade, Chris Paul, and Carmelo Anthony would be “cool.” He proceeded to say, “I really hope that, before our career is over, we can all play together. At least one, maybe one or two seasons – me, Melo, D-Wade, CP – we can get a year in. I would actually take a pay cut to do that.” C’mon LeBron!! You’re nearing the postseason with your top-seeded Cavaliers and you’re saying things like this?? He knows the media is going to jump all over this story, and rightfully so, which makes you wonder why he can’t keep his mouth shut and just keep these things to himself. To a certain degree, this situation is like a romantic relationship. If a man is in the middle of a relationship with one woman, is he going to make it known to her and the rest of the world that he wants to sleep with some of his other female friends in the future? Absolutely not! Just keep it to yourself, man.
James also was seen chatting with Wade during halftime of Saturday night’s game against the Heat instead of warming up with his current teammates, who trailed by 21 at the half. Head coach Tyronn Lue certainly wasn’t a fan of James’ latest remarks and actions. He and Griffin sat down with James this past Saturday night after their blowout loss to Dwyane Wade’s Heat. Lue told reporters, “I just told him we can’t have that, being down like we were and him being the leader. Just me being a competitor, I didn’t like it.” What kind of leader needs to have a talk with his coach and general manager about foolish subjects like these? He shouldn’t be constantly putting himself in situations that make his teammates and front office question his commitment to their team.
When you think of the greatest leaders in sports, Derek Jeter, Michael Jordan, and Peyton Manning are some of the names that come to mind. While James’ talent may be comparable, his leadership most definitely is not. His immature antics, such as bumping into former coach Erik Spoelstra and counting his nonexistent rings the first time he tried on a Miami Heat jersey, were supposed to be issues of the past. As it turns out, they’re not. James has been more of a problem for the Cavs than a solution as they seek stability and leadership. He hasn’t gotten the best of his teammates, nor has he earned all of their trust.
The criticism of LeBron James comes as a result of his greatness. With elite talent and lofty promises come great expectations, and in the NBA, one of those expectations includes being a powerful leader. Unfortunately for the Cavaliers, LeBron James is yet to prove that he can be a powerful leader.
