The Best LeBron Destination Debate… LeBron Should Blow Into The Windy City

May 24, 2010

Read the opposing arguments from Sports Geek and Bleacher Fan.

It is a topic that will dominate sports headlines until July 1. It will be everywhere you turn, on every sports program, and in every sports section of nearly every newspaper. No, I am not referring to Bleacher Fan’s beloved World Cup, I’m talking about the ‘Where Will LeBron Play?” discussion.

It will be interesting to see if he stays in Cleveland, goes to New York, or maybe even the Clippers. Perhaps the news that coach Mike Brown won’t be retained by the Cavs will have some bearing on LeBron’s decision. All in all though, I believe the best fit for James would be to sign with the Chicago Bulls.

The city of Chicago has been yearning for its basketball team to return to the glory days of the 1990’s, and going after James and quite possibly Chris Bosh would most definitely put them back in position to return to those glory days.

James has repeatedly said he wants to win, which may limit the chances the New York Knicks or the Los Angeles Clippers have. The Bulls have a talented team as it is now, though, which is something James saw during the first round of the playoffs this year. Can you just imagine what the Bulls lineup with the look like if James joined the fray? Depending on other factors such as possible sign-and-trade deals, James could take the court next to the likes of Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah, and Luol Deng. That doesn’t even count the possibility of Bosh, who listed Chicago as one of his preferred destinations, coming to town with James.

There’s something else to consider that I really hadn’t thought about until the other day. Remember late last year when LeBron said that he was going to give up his number 23 and switch to number 6. At the time, he said he was doing it as a tribute to Michael Jordan. In fact, he asked that all players refrain from wearing the number, as it should be synonymous with “His Airness”. But perhaps that day last November, he was opening the door for possibly playing for the Bulls in the 2010-2011 season, because obviously no one is going to wear Jordan’s jersey in Chicago. Whatever his motive was for the number change, you have to admit it is rather interesting.

You can also say what you want about Barack Obama’s presidency, but the commander-in-chief keeps up with sports quite regularly. He’s been active about filling out a bracket for March Madness the past couple of seasons, and just last week he also chimed in on the LeBron sweepstakes, saying he would “fit in well” with Chicago. Obviously, this needs to be taken in context, as Obama is a former Senator from Illinois, but you know James has definitely paid attention.

It’s going to be a wild debate over the next month. We all may even get sick of hearing about it. But once the dust settles, I think LeBron James should go to the Windy City and try to win championships the way Number 23 did.

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The LeBron James Patriotic Obligation Debate… A King Must Represent His Country

April 16, 2010

Read the opposing arguments from Bleacher Fan and Babe Ruthless.

Nothing brings out the fire of Americans like a debate involving patriotism, huh?

LeBron James definitely turned some heads recently when he stated that he may skip out on the FIBA World Championship Tournament. The fact that Jerry Colangelo called him out on it erased any chance this had of slipping through the cracks. Colangelo backed down (somewhat), but it is an interesting enough situation to catch the attention of The Sports Debates.

Does LeBron James have a patriotic duty to participate in the World Championship Tournament?

Bleacher Fan believes that LeBron has the freedom to choose not to play, which is correct. It is also correct that LeBron has done his fair share of work to prove his loyalty to our fine country. He, along with being the face of the NBA, has been the face of Team U.S.A. for the past six years whenever the Stars and Stripes have participated in a tournament.

Babe Ruthless, in the role of U.S.A. cheerleader, breaks out the pom poms. He argues that the FIBA World Championship Tournament, like Ron Burgundy, is kind of a big deal. It’s the same way Joe Biden feels about health care reform. The Babe is obviously disgusted that King James wants to follow in the footsteps of The Worm and The Diesel and pursue a movie career, instead of suiting up for the Red, White, and Blue.

It is often said that the World Championship Tournament is held in the same high regard as the Summer Olympics. I would not go that far. Before all of this came up, I had absolutely no clue where the tournament was going to be played this summer. Either way, LeBron has made it clear he has a REALLY (times five) busy Summer. We all know his contract situation and how hectic that could turn out to be. And by all means, he certainly has the FREEDOM of choice to do whatever he deems appropriate with his spare time.

But the question centered on whether or not he has a duty to play, and he most certainly does. Therefore, I award the victory to Babe Ruthless.

I would not go as far as to say his reputation would take a big hit if he skipped out for a non-injury related issue. But people like Babe Ruthless will not forget. Another point that needs to be made is the fact that Team U.S.A. has worked extremely hard to put our country back on top in international basketball team competitions. The 1992 Dream Team was one of the most dominant forces in sports history in its pursuit of the gold medal. The 1996 team won also. But since then, the aura surrounding American basketball had slipped. Europeans and other nationalities began to infiltrate the NBA, and it became increasingly clear that basketball had become more of a worldwide sport. This was evident by an embarrassingly lackluster effort in the 2004 Summer Olympics, when Team USA brought home the bronze.

Things got so dire that Mike Krzyzewski was brought in to right the ship. Much more emphasis was put on tournament competition to get U.S.A. back to the top. The additional attention and effort showed in 2008, as the Americans cruised to the gold medal. Bleacher Fan pointed out that there are many other stars that could carry the torch for the U.S.A. That’s certainly true. But, what if the unexpected happens and the U.S.A. loses in the world championship tournament this summer if LeBron doesn’t play? Is it LeBron’s fault? No, of course not. But much of the blame would be put on him. People will say, “Well if LeBron would have played…”

No one is DEMANDING LeBron James play. This isn’t a dictatorship, thank goodness. But it is a duty that he needs to fully understand. You don’t have to vote in this county, but it is your duty as a citizen to do so.

I will use Babe’s quote, which has been said many times over. “With great power comes great responsibility.” LeBron James is the face of American basketball. He has the power. And with that power, it’s his responsibility to help keep U.S.A. basketball on top.

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