I used to hate LeBron James.
It wasn’t anything the man said or did. In fact, it had nothing at all to do with LeBron and everything to do with Kevin Garnett and Michael Jordan. After many years of watching Jordan being touted as the ‘it’ guy, I bought in. I was (and remain) a Knick fan who also became a Bulls fan and started following a team solely based on a particular superstar whose ability transcended team allegiance. I justified this by reminding myself that Jordan is a New Yorker and as such very much deserved my allegiance. This all happened before I recognized the tribal nature of team support and decided to become a bit of a sociologist largely as a result of such understandings.
Anyhow, it all led to me hating LeBron James..
So, as things progressed over time the media hyped up a kid named Kevin Garnett. He was amazing and fun to watch and played for the most uninspiring team imaginable: The Timberwolves. I didn’t want to watch them, I wanted to watch him. Eventually I gave up and decided not to waste my minutes on the dude and as a result missed some radical basketball. I saw some of the highlights… Years went by and athlete after athlete was hyped. I avoided the first five years of Kobe before I relented and recognized his greatness. That moment changed me, because I knew that I was going to want to watch the next legit ‘King’ no matter where he ended up.
Then along came James.
I didn’t buy it, same as Kobe, then I did. I watched him light things up as a Cav and hated the Cavs (its a Buls fan thing) the entire time. Then I watched him form the Big 3 in Miami and get to the show every single year. Now he’s back in the finals with another team and his legacy is cemented. It doesn’t even matter if he wins. I’m a LeBron fan because I like good basketball. It is the same reason I enjoy watching Jaden Newman torch people all day and night. It is the same reason I enjoy watching the Warriors play.
I am still a Knick fan, which means that come playoff season I’m always a free agent fan. Steph Curry’s jumper is, as they say, ‘wet’. LeBron hasn’t even shown his A-game all year. Kyrie ‘Uncle Drew‘ Irving is hurt worse than he lets on. Still, this is going to be good basketball and I am going to watch without prediction.
Some Thoughts:
- I’ve been researching religious and historical mysteries in preparation for a class. One such mystery is the 1855 Devil’s Footprints incident. Back in 1855 a hundred + mile stretch of snow near and around Devon, England was marked with a mysterious set of cloven hoof prints that, at times seem to march up to drain pipes and houses and reappear on the other side… This ‘evil Santa’ was seen as an incarnation of the devil and the prints have never been explained… The world is full of spook stuff.