LeBron came off as a no class, sore loser last night

Michigan

He blew off the media and marched off the court refusing to shake hands with any
of the Magic players. The "Kings" nickname should be changed to "sore loser" James.

halosfan

He also didn't step up and try to guard anyone on the Magic who was hurting them offensively through the whole series for any length of time. All of the other all time greats have done so. I'd like to see him earn his way into that conversation instead of having it handed to him.

bman90278

I didn't realize lebron didn't talk to the press, but I did notice he snubbed the Magic players. Maybe Lebron should have watched the end of the Lakers Nuggets game and see how Carmello and his teammates all gave t he Lakers hugs and congratulations.

I'm sure Lebron was shocked but he needed to step up and be a man.

Brian

lsutigers1973

I would love to defend the guy since he seems to do everything we expect out of him on and off the court. However, his refusal to shale hands after defeat was very disappointing. Howard even defended him saying they were friends and he understands his pain. Guess he showed who the bigger man was.

joestalin

Me thinks the media and the nba needs Lebron and his endorsments more than Lebron needs them. In the end we confirm what we already knew, basketball
is a team sport!

JS

baseballfan

bush league move. winners know how to win and lose. he has a long way to go.

perkdog

<< <i>I would love to defend the guy since he seems to do everything we expect out of him on and off the court. However, his refusal to shale hands after defeat was very disappointing. Howard even defended him saying they were friends and he understands his pain. Guess he showed who the bigger man was. >>




Agreed, the kid needs to grow up apparently.

Barndog

don't judge him until you have been in his position. Carried his team in 90% of the games all year, more so in the playoffs. Maybe during the 4th quarter it finally dawned on him that he can't win in Cleveland because he doesn't have an appropriate supporting cast. Maybe he realized he is going to have to move after 2010 if he expects to win it all. Do what he did all year and fail and see if you are happy about it and want to gush and blow happy smoke up people's rears right after losing.

swartz1

It is always easier to point the finger...

Michigan

"Do what he did all year and fail and see if you are happy about it and want to gush and blow happy smoke up people's rears right after losing."

That is not the point, nobody expected him to be in a happy mood after the game but that does not excuse a total lack of
sportsmanship on his part. Many people in various sports have been on the losing end in big games and at least had enough
class to congratulate the winner.

joestalin

Lebron is the NBA, if anyone else thinks otherwise they are mistaken. What are you all going to do, stop watching it?

Bron can do what he wants!

JS

Bottom9th

<< <i>"Do what he did all year and fail and see if you are happy about it and want to gush and blow happy smoke up people's rears right after losing."

That is not the point, nobody expected him to be in a happy mood after the game but that does not excuse a total lack of
sportsmanship on his part. Many people in various sports have been on the losing end in big games and at least had enough
class to congratulate the winner. >>






I'm sure he was bummed but he showed no class and needs to man up.

Michigan

"Lebron is the NBA, if anyone else thinks otherwise they are mistaken"

Uh, yeah right, I'm sure that is what he is going to be thinking as he is sitting at home
watching the NBA finals on TV.

swartz1

right...and next year when he has a new coach and new teammates...

what will he have accomplished?

DIMEMAN

>>Lebron is the NBA, if anyone else thinks otherwise they are mistaken. What are you all going to do, stop watching it?

Bron can do what he wants!<<


EL Wrong O..............He is NOT the NBA. If he was half as good as he thinks he is and the media has hyped him as.........He MIGHT be 1/4 the player MJ was!!!!

smet

<< <i>>>Lebron is the NBA, if anyone else thinks otherwise they are mistaken. What are you all going to do, stop watching it?

Bron can do what he wants!<<


EL Wrong O..............He is NOT the NBA. If he was half as good as he thinks he is and the media has hyped him as.........He MIGHT be 1/4 the player MJ was!!!! >>



So, if I'm doing my math right, you claim he is about 1/8 as good as Jordan?

DIMEMAN

Yes, something like that.

It's hard to compare zero to 6.....that's the rings they have.

And Mike could play "D".

Mike could spell TEAM.

All Le Bron knows is stand out front dribbling until the clock runs down then either shoot a 3 or bulldoze into the paint and hope he gets fouled. And in the last game the refs caught on to that!

Don't get me wrong, he is good one on one, but when it comes to overall basketball and taking control of a game....don't even put his name in the same sentence as MJ.

The record speaks for it's self. The Bulls won 3 straight with MJ leading them. Lost 2 while he was away playing BBall. Then won 3 straight again when he returned!

Nuff said!!!!

RonBurgundy

FAIL. WGAS really if Lebron walked off the court? The guy wanted to win, are we really all that serious about a post-game handshake???

Stop trying to no-win the guy. If he had hugged Dwight Howard, people would be on here blathering about how he was fraternizing with the enemy after a loss.

Let's not forget that Bird and Jordan were not exactly the greatest sportsmen either. Neither is Kobe. But all three are all about winning. Give me a winner who gets mad when he loses compared to a loser who slaps hands and yucks it up with players who have just beat his arse.

Good Lord this is so stupid to even be talking about this. What a friggin' joke.

recbball

If LeBron can't stand his team and his contract is up next year, might he be in a good position to force a trade. If the Cavs don't trade him and let his contract expire and he chooses to leave, they would get nothing.

billwaltonsbeard

<< <i>FAIL. WGAS really if Lebron walked off the court? The guy wanted to win, are we really all that serious about a post-game handshake???

Stop trying to no-win the guy. If he had hugged Dwight Howard, people would be on here blathering about how he was fraternizing with the enemy after a loss. >>




I agree 100%. The VERY heavily favored Cavs were completely outplayed throughout the whole series. Lebron has to feel shame and embarrassment. And Ron's absolutely right....if Lebron had been out there smiling and slappin the Magic on their rears, the media would be all over him for that too.

His team got humiliated and just wanted to get the hell outta there...big deal

StormIsComing

I don't understand all the fuss. LeBron is in a no-win situation. The league has put him on a pedestal in an attempt to be the savior of the league. Nike put out those commercials featuring him and LeBron, trying to foreshadow a finals preview. Meanwhile, he's stuck with a bunch of stiffs in Cleveland and has to carry his team as well. His team won 66 games this year but Orlando was a matchup problem for the Cavs all season. It's not as if the Magic came out of nowhere to upset the Cavs, they won the season series 2-1. But we had ESPN as well as anyone else who had a voice telling us about the inevitable Kobe/LeBron matchup.

Then comes the series with the Magic and, if not for a miracle 3 pointer in game 2, the Magic would likely have swept. LeBron, like any great athlete, wants to win more than anything, and saw that slip through his hands because his teammates are so lacking. LeBron walking off the floor is not something he's done before - he was gracious in last year's loss against the Celtics and in the finals 2 years ago. At some point, though, the frustration of killing yourself, of doing everything possible to win and it not being good enough is going to overload anybody - and it did LeBron.

People want to berate LeBron for his avoiding the media, for not shaking the Magic's hands after the loss. But from everything I've seen and heard from current NBA players, they all understand where he's coming from, they all understand his frustration, they all appreciate the pressure laid on LeBron's shoulders and his herculean efforts not being good enough, because his team wasn't good enough.

I'm sure LeBron would do things differently if and when this happens again. But before we throw stones, let's not first ask ourselves if there's a chance we would have done the same thing.

alnavman

This thread is amazing, I remember when Cleveland first got in the playoffs and Lebron was all happy friendly handshaking, back slapping and kissing up to the Pistons. Everyone was upset about that. Now here is the opposite and everyone is upset about that. Guess that's why they have these sports talk threads so everyone can state their opinion. BUT I CAN guarantee that if he had gone up to all of the Magic, hugging and kissing there would have been another thread started about how soft Lebron was and why he didn't have the "Killer Instinct"......nuff said

halosfan

This is all about manning up both ways. If Cleveland would have won he would have been front and center taking all of the credit. They lose and he leaves it to the coaches and team-mates to face the music. No one said to throw a party for the Magic. Just show some modicum of sportsmanship and move on to the press room and do the rest of your job. Melo did it when they lost to the Lakers. It's not all that complicated.

These guys are all way too pampered.

Barndog

<< <i>I don't understand all the fuss. LeBron is in a no-win situation. The league has put him on a pedestal in an attempt to be the savior of the league. Nike put out those commercials featuring him and LeBron, trying to foreshadow a finals preview. Meanwhile, he's stuck with a bunch of stiffs in Cleveland and has to carry his team as well. His team won 66 games this year but Orlando was a matchup problem for the Cavs all season. It's not as if the Magic came out of nowhere to upset the Cavs, they won the season series 2-1. But we had ESPN as well as anyone else who had a voice telling us about the inevitable Kobe/LeBron matchup.

Then comes the series with the Magic and, if not for a miracle 3 pointer in game 2, the Magic would likely have swept. LeBron, like any great athlete, wants to win more than anything, and saw that slip through his hands because his teammates are so lacking. LeBron walking off the floor is not something he's done before - he was gracious in last year's loss against the Celtics and in the finals 2 years ago. At some point, though, the frustration of killing yourself, of doing everything possible to win and it not being good enough is going to overload anybody - and it did LeBron.

People want to berate LeBron for his avoiding the media, for not shaking the Magic's hands after the loss. But from everything I've seen and heard from current NBA players, they all understand where he's coming from, they all understand his frustration, they all appreciate the pressure laid on LeBron's shoulders and his herculean efforts not being good enough, because his team wasn't good enough.

I'm sure LeBron would do things differently if and when this happens again. But before we throw stones, let's not first ask ourselves if there's a chance we would have done the same thing. >>



welcome, great first post, and I totally agree.

StormIsComing

Thanks. And I meant to say in my post the commercials featured him and Kobe. And this talk about 'manning up'? Did LeBron man up when he had his entire team up to accept his MVP award? As far as the comment that they're way too pampered. Of course they are. All of them are. But that's what you get when you have the talent and work ethic to be among the very best in the world and make millions of dollars. It's curious that you criticize LeBron (and the NBA in general) for being pampered but you proudly put 'My Arod Set' in your signature. Talk about pampered!

DamageInc

<< <i>FAIL. WGAS really if Lebron walked off the court? The guy wanted to win, are we really all that serious about a post-game handshake???

Stop trying to no-win the guy. If he had hugged Dwight Howard, people would be on here blathering about how he was fraternizing with the enemy after a loss.

Let's not forget that Bird and Jordan were not exactly the greatest sportsmen either. Neither is Kobe. But all three are all about winning. Give me a winner who gets mad when he loses compared to a loser who slaps hands and yucks it up with players who have just beat his arse.

Good Lord this is so stupid to even be talking about this. What a friggin' joke. >>



You have spoken the truth my friend. It's about time Lebron gets a mean streak. He played his ass off this year and carried his mediocre supporting cast to the ECF and was everything a MVP is. He single handedly won game 5 in the fourth, might as well as been 1 on 5!! As far as Lebron being 1/4 of the player Jordan was, give me a effing break! Here is what Jordan had that Lebron doesn't:
1. PIPPEN
2. GRANT
3. RODMAN
4. PIPPEN
5. PIPPEN

The Cavs were way too small for Orlando. Imagine that series with no Lebron.......scary.

bman90278

<< <i>I don't understand all the fuss. LeBron is in a no-win situation. The league has put him on a pedestal in an attempt to be the savior of the league. Nike put out those commercials featuring him and LeBron, trying to foreshadow a finals preview. Meanwhile, he's stuck with a bunch of stiffs in Cleveland and has to carry his team as well. His team won 66 games this year but Orlando was a matchup problem for the Cavs all season. It's not as if the Magic came out of nowhere to upset the Cavs, they won the season series 2-1. But we had ESPN as well as anyone else who had a voice telling us about the inevitable Kobe/LeBron matchup.

Then comes the series with the Magic and, if not for a miracle 3 pointer in game 2, the Magic would likely have swept. LeBron, like any great athlete, wants to win more than anything, and saw that slip through his hands because his teammates are so lacking. LeBron walking off the floor is not something he's done before - he was gracious in last year's loss against the Celtics and in the finals 2 years ago. At some point, though, the frustration of killing yourself, of doing everything possible to win and it not being good enough is going to overload anybody - and it did LeBron.

People want to berate LeBron for his avoiding the media, for not shaking the Magic's hands after the loss. But from everything I've seen and heard from current NBA players, they all understand where he's coming from, they all understand his frustration, they all appreciate the pressure laid on LeBron's shoulders and his herculean efforts not being good enough, because his team wasn't good enough.

I'm sure LeBron would do things differently if and when this happens again. But before we throw stones, let's not first ask ourselves if there's a chance we would have done the same thing. >>



Welcome and great first post. In regards to your last sentence...I don't think it matters what we would have done in that situation as none of us are professional athletes. It only matters what the other pro NBA players did after their losses.

I believe Lebron is a great asset to the NBA and that everyone is entitled to a bad day. I'm sure it will all be forgotten soon.

Brian

jeffcbay

If you watched the last game, you would have noticed that the Magic (fans especially) were not being good sports about winning, so they did not EARN the right to have LeBron or anyone else on the Cavs to be a good sport about losing.

RonBurgundy

You know, one thing that's really interesting about the Cavs-Magic series is this:

The Magic scored 60 more points on 3 pointers in the series than the Cavs, yet they only outscored the Cavs in total points by 15. Going into Game 6, the 2 teams were separated by 2 total points.

That tells me several things:

Even with not much around him, it still took a crazy-good shooting effort by the Magic to beat the Cavs, and they barely did it at that.

Potato Roker, head chief for the Cavs, should be incarcerated for not making adjustments and manning up on the perimeter to shut down Orlando.

Lebron has about 1/2 a star player as his sidekick.......Mo Williams. They need to add one more guy. If they do, it's church and ain't nobody gonna stop the King.

jeffcbay

It was like clockwork, when the Magic had the ball, they had FOUR guys on the arc, with Howard running around in the middle, while all five Cavs were tripping over each other trying to figure out what to do. If Howard couldn't take it to the hole, he'd kick it out to one of the AUTOMATIC and undefended 3-point shooters. It was complete torture to watch.

Goot

<< <i>

Lebron has about 1/2 a star player as his sidekick.......Mo Williams. They need to add one more guy. If they do, it's church and ain't nobody gonna stop the King. >>




Exactly. That's what the Magic did when they signed Rashard Lewis, and look where they are now. Other than signing that "no-name" Turkoglu back in 2005( i think?), the Rashard Lewis deal is probably the most successful free agent signing in Magic history.

Bottom9th

lebron article

RonBurgundy

LOLOLOLOLOL at that misinformed piece of trash. No one remembers, but Lebron did the same thing in Boston last year.

IrishMike

Some interesting rewrites of history, for example if he was so gracious in the Boston series, why are there articles all over the net pointing out that he didn't shake hands in the Boston series either. Personally I couldn't have cared less if he mooned the crowd in Orlando. But let's not rewrite history and he has shown a lack of maturity in not being more gracious. Look at Zeke for example, his career was tarnished after his antics in the Bull's loss, i.e. walking off the court not shaking hands. Good grief we learned as kids in little league to shake hands, then go get root beer. Like I said personally don't care what he does but I am not going to put on rose colored spectacles and defend the guy and post nonsense on a forum then have two more rosey eyed posters congratulate me for mistaking the facts.

BigDaddyBowman

Irish Mike you state that Lebron showed a lack of maturity in his action. As a Clevelander who has been a "witness" to Lebron since his Sophomore year of high school, I think his past actions and behavior have demonstrated the exact opposite...tremendous maturity. Lebron has been in the Cleveland media eye since high school, and I have been impressed with his maturity. If he farts...everyone in Ohio knows about it. He has been a stellar representative of the Akron and Cleveland communities. SO many times, he has done the "right" thing. I base my opinion on his body of work not one incident.

As an Athletic Director of a high school, I am constantly preaching sportsmanship to our young athletes. Should he have shook hands with the opponent...of course...but lets not turn this into a persecution of James character. He has demonstrated tremendous class and character...personally and professionally.