NBA Finals

[Chadd 916]

What LeBron had to say after the game.

Ouch.....

Way to deflect attention away from his failings on and off the court. Ever since his TV special, he has made a bad impression time and time again. At some point, if you do enough bad things, you become a bad guy. It's not everyone else, it's not the media, it's him.

[Axxion89 32]

Way to deflect attention away from his failings on and off the court. Ever since his TV special, he has made a bad impression time and time again. At some point, if you do enough bad things, you become a bad guy. It's not everyone else, it's not the media, it's him.

Not gonna lie, I'm actually glad he said what he did. I mean at this point, the country hates you for his mistake and no matter what he does, short of curing cancer and attaining world peace, he is going to be hated. So might as well be a villian and take a shot at all those people hating on him.

[HockeySavants 5]

Way to deflect attention away from his failings on and off the court. Ever since his TV special, he has made a bad impression time and time again. At some point, if you do enough bad things, you become a bad guy. It's not everyone else, it's not the media, it's him.

Funny, I woke up the next day feeling good, he woke up without an NBA championship....again.

If it wasn't for us "commonfolk" with problems, he wouldn't have multiple million dollar contracts, but I guess he's forgotten where he started.

And to call himself "King" James...not sure what kind of king.

[skeeter14 0]

And to call himself "King" James...not sure what kind of king.

Arrogance? Narcissism perhaps?

Didn't like him after his "Decision", and for him and Wade to mock Dirk showed how unprofessional the team is, when your leaders are doing that. If Dirk was sick, he still beat those bunch of punks. What's their excuse?

[Machinehead2k5 32]

This is the first time that ANYONE on the Mavs won a championship right??

[Jason Harris 31]

Not gonna lie, I'm actually glad he said what he did. I mean at this point, the country hates you for his mistake and no matter what he does, short of curing cancer and attaining world peace, he is going to be hated. So might as well be a villian and take a shot at all those people hating on him.

But I think the country would hate him less if he owned up to the mistake of the "The Decision." Instead, he's continued to defend it, rather than say he should have just made the announcement through a press release.

Think about it. If we had read that LeBron was going to sign with Miami, then the next day there was a press conference during which he said what he said after the Celtics series -- that is was the realization that he needed his own Big Three to beat the Celts' Big Three -- then no one would have become turned off by him.

[dangle 0]

This is the first time that ANYONE on the Mavs won a championship right??

Rick Carlisle (the coach) won a championship as a player, but yes, you are correct.

[dsjunior1388 81]

Dirk has been waiting for this ring for 13 years. Kidd, 17 years. You'd think they'd be overcome with emotion.

LeBron checked out in the fourth quarter again. NO sense of urgency whatsoever. He has a long way to go to be mentioned in the same breath as MJ, IMO.

I thought Bosh played well in GM 6, he played with heart.

Kudos to the Mavs, it's great to see Dirk win it all after 13 years of busting his tail, staying loyal to Dallas, playing through the flu this series, etc. Great post season run by a team who was expected to be a first-round bust again this year by many.

+1. Not sure who started the correlation between the two... James himself? Haha.

He was "anointed" the next Jordan before he had a drivers license. Mostly because the media realized that *deep breath* Vince Carter, Kobe Bryant, Allen Iverson, Tracy McGrady, Yao Ming, 70 million other vaguely talented young players weren't the next Jordan. Its pathetic the way the media expects to see a repeat of a once in a lifetime talent within 5 years after the original talent retires.

But I think the country would hate him less if he owned up to the mistake of the "The Decision." Instead, he's continued to defend it, rather than say he should have just made the announcement through a press release.

Think about it. If we had read that LeBron was going to sign with Miami, then the next day there was a press conference during which he said what he said after the Celtics series -- that is was the realization that he needed his own Big Three to beat the Celts' Big Three -- then no one would have become turned off by him.

Very true, the problem is "The Decision" wasn't his idea, it was Jim Gray's, and the people who most benefited were Maverick Carter, and Gray. He was just along for a reputation destroying ride.

[wrangler 157]

Very true, the problem is "The Decision" wasn't his idea, it was Jim Gray's, and the people who most benefited were Maverick Carter, and Gray. He was just along for a reputation destroying ride.

James made the decision to do it.

[cemetery 14]

Vince Carter, Kobe Bryant, Allen Iverson, Tracy McGrady, Yao Ming,

Please don't lump in Kobe with those other bums, he's more than proved beyond a shadow of a doubt he belongs in the pantheon of all time greats time and time again no matter how much people want to downplay his accomplishments and anoint the so called "next Jordan".

[Chadd 916]

Please don't lump in Kobe with those other bums,...

Exactly, lump him in with guys like Mike Tyson and Ben Roethlisberger

[ponty 0]

I just hate the NBA. Period.

When you (I) find myself cheering for a team owned by Mark Cuban you have a problem.

[skeeter14 0]

Exactly, lump him in with guys like Mike Tyson and Ben Roethlisberger

Zing!

[ibeck 38]

Saw this, wanted to share:

I asked Lebron if he had change for a dollar. He only gave me 3 quarters, said he didnt have a 4th.

[dsjunior1388 81]

Please don't lump in Kobe with those other bums, he's more than proved beyond a shadow of a doubt he belongs in the pantheon of all time greats time and time again no matter how much people want to downplay his accomplishments and anoint the so called "next Jordan".

Hes a terrific player, easily top 10, possibly top 5 all-time. But he's not as good as, or better than, Jordan. My point was the sports media expect the moon from every promising young player, when in fact they should acknowledge that no one will ever be better than Jordan.

[Jason Harris 31]

Why will no ever be better than Jordan? It took seven years and Scottie Pippen for Jordan to win his first championship.

Besides which, I think almost all sports fans overlook the accomplishments of Bill Russell. Eleven crowns in 13 seasons, plus two from college and one in the Olympics, at a time that the sports world, let alone Boston, wasn't too keen on black athletes.

[dangle 0]

Why will no ever be better than Jordan? It took seven years and Scottie Pippen for Jordan to win his first championship.

Besides which, I think almost all sports fans overlook the accomplishments of Bill Russell. Eleven crowns in 13 seasons, plus two from college and one in the Olympics, at a time that the sports world, let alone Boston, wasn't too keen on black athletes.

The game of basketball was different in the late 80's and early 90's. You had the Detriot Pistons who were equivalent to the Flyers of the 70's who employed the "Jordan Rules" which took the one player away from the Bulls who they needed to win.

Eventually, the Bulls built a TEAM around Jordan and the results are evident. Basketball is a team game.

I'm not implying MJ was better or worse than Bill Russell, but MJ was the first international superstar in basketball. He was well known throughout the world through various endorsements, media types (TV, newspaper, magazines, etc.) and more. He had a huge impact on the game of basketball through his merchandise sales (who can forget his 1985 "banned" NIKE shoes?) and his love of the game (had a "love of the game" clause in his contract allowing him to play basketball anytime, anywhere).

How many people outside of the U.S. knew Bill Russell when he was playing? They played in different times.

Simply the name recognition has a huge affect on people's opinions of sports players.

I do agree that 11 championships in 13 years is simply incredible. Does winning 11 TEAM NBA championships over Jordan's 6 TEAM NBA championships make Russell a better player than Jordan? No.

[dsjunior1388 81]

Why will no ever be better than Jordan? It took seven years and Scottie Pippen for Jordan to win his first championship.

Besides which, I think almost all sports fans overlook the accomplishments of Bill Russell. Eleven crowns in 13 seasons, plus two from college and one in the Olympics, at a time that the sports world, let alone Boston, wasn't too keen on black athletes.

I'm a huge fan of Russell, but the fact that he was one of few black men in the league (There was an unwritten rule that you kept more white players than black players on your team, most teams limited themselves to 3 or less) definitely watered down the league and made his talent stand out. That, plus Wilt's lack of competitive drive and being able to play with Bob Cousy and other greats, made winning 11 titles easier for Russell than winning 6 was for Jordan.

[chippa13 1844]

So Russell's 11 championships were easier than Jordan's 6? I don't buy it. Because Russell played on a good team? As I recall, Jordan had the benefit of some pretty good teammates himself.

[RadioGaGa 162]

I just hate the NBA. Period.

When you (I) find myself cheering for a team owned by Mark Cuban you have a problem.

I'm not familiar with Cuban and where his money comes from. But he seems like the best kind of owner. He cares about his players and wants to make a team/atmosphere/experience that other players want to come to. It is my understanding that he paid for the Parade because he said the City should not have to foot any of the bill for that kind of thing.

Why the hate?

[wrangler 157]

Cuban seems more like a fan than a businessman, and I like that. I also like the way he doesn't let the league muzzle him. He says what he wants, and when the NBA fines him, he writes it a check with a smile.

[Drewhunz 3]

I'm not familiar with Cuban and where his money comes from. But he seems like the best kind of owner. He cares about his players and wants to make a team/atmosphere/experience that other players want to come to. It is my understanding that he paid for the Parade because he said the City should not have to foot any of the bill for that kind of thing.

Why the hate?

Cuban founded Broadcast.com- First company to stream radio over the internet. Sold company for $7 billion.

Cuban is Cuban. Take him or leave him, he doesn't care one whit. For that, I gotta respect the guy.

He says what he wants, and when the NBA fines him, he writes it a check with a smile.

He not only writes that check, but matches it personally.

[Jason Harris 31]

Since I made a prediction in another thread that I thought Oklahoma City had too much overall speed than Miami and would win in five or six games, I need to clarify that when I made those remarks I had no idea that they're were going to melt like the Wicked Witch at the end of Game 3.

I don't know if I've ever seen a team throw away the ball as badly as I saw OKC do at the end of that game. If they don't win tonight, this series will be over in five for Miami.

[cgrays12 0]

Im not a basketball fan by any means. I cant stand the sport. The only thing I cant stand more is the Miami Heat having been allowed by Stern to "buy" their championship (assuming they will win, and it looks like they will).

I hope there arent any Miami fans who are proud of what their team accomplishes. Its a joke that without a salary cap teams are able to buy their way deep into playoffs

[Chadd 916]

Im not a basketball fan by any means. I cant stand the sport. The only thing I cant stand more is the Miami Heat having been allowed by Stern to "buy" their championship (assuming they will win, and it looks like they will).

I hope there arent any Miami fans who are proud of what their team accomplishes. Its a joke that without a salary cap teams are able to buy their way deep into playoffs

The NBA does have a salary cap