Follow the Leader

Leaders are made, they are not born. They are made by hard effort, which is the price which all of us must pay to achieve any goal that is worthwhile.

– Vince Lombardi

Perhaps you can blame Nike or anyone else among his inner circle that has helped to precipitate the inflated ego that has rested upon the shoulders of LeBron James ever since he was in high school.

You see, there was once a time when the pursuit of a championship in professional sports was all about the journey.

But when the majority of your life has been spent listening to people tell you how good you are and how good you can become, how are you supposed to react?

Why earn your place? Why use your naturally cultivated talents—as sublime as they are—to earn your spot among the NBA’s all-time elite?

Why do all that when you can go to someone else’s team, in someone else’s city and set yourself up for a lengthy championship reign?

Let’s not mix words here—LeBron James took the easy way out. He did.

He could have gone to New York and taken on the challenge of turning around a taciturn Knicks franchise; although it wouldn’t take long for the pressure to win in the world’s media capital to reach its boiling point.

He could have gone to Chicago—quite frankly the best destination for him if winning was his real goal—and built a perennial contender with Derrick Rose, Carlos Boozer, Joakim Noah; although if he didn’t have the stomach to wear the number 23 anymore, how could he stand to live and play in Michael Jordan’s shadow in Chicago?

He could have stayed in Cleveland and done what he set out to do when he was drafted first overall by his hometown team in 2003 and lead the Cavs to a title; although it was pretty clear by LeBron’s performance against Boston in the playoffs that he couldn’t handle the load of carrying a team to a championship anymore.

He could have, but he didn’t do any of those things. He didn’t choose the challenge; he didn’t choose a path that—if he became a champion—would have secured his place as an all-time great.

And that’s where he went wrong.

Sure, the elements of his breakup with Cleveland could have been handled better (the city of Seattle sends its sympathy, Cleveland.) but it’s his lack of vision for his legacy that is most offensive.

He now becomes the latest in a long line of athletes for whom the concept of culpability and accountability seems to be lost, at least if they require a mirror to determine where it belongs.

Stars of a now long-gone generation of basketball wanted to make their teammates better; now players rely on their teammates to make them better.

LeBron, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh may ultimately win championships; they may ultimately become one of the most dominant dynasties in the history of a league defined by them.

But as pundits, experts and fans alike take the steps necessary to crown the Miami Heat as the 2011 NBA Champions, somewhere in southern California Kobe Bryant is smiling and getting ready for next year.

It’s a shame that LeBron didn’t want to take on his own challenge that way.