the counting stats at a time when offensive numbers in the league have exploded. No one ever devised The Lebron Rules because defense is an afterthought today

He was better neither at his peak nor for a career.

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O judgment! Thou art fled to brutish beasts,
And men have lost their reason.

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Why are only 14 percent of black CPS 11th-graders proficient in English?

LBJ really wants to be liked.

MJ didn't give a shit, which made him all the more likeable.

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Sex isn't dirty, sex isn't a crime. It's a loving act between two or more consenting adults.

-Hank Kingsley

yep.

I don't recall a single time during MJ's career where he complained or even spoke about his ranking amongst the all time greats. All he cared about was winning.

Lebron is a clown.

_________________

A Deadspin writer not kissing LeBron's ass. It's refreshing.





When only superteams in preferred markets can win people lose interest.

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Why are only 14 percent of black CPS 11th-graders proficient in English?

I beg to differ with you both. A core part of the Jordan brand was to be as likeable as possible. He did this by not saying really anything (Republicans buy sneakers too). This is an intentional strategy designed by corporate advisors to maximize his endorsement earning potential and grow his brand.

LBJ on the other hand puts himself out there. He endorsed a candidate for election in 2016. Jordan to my knowledge never did such a thing during his playing years, in fact he intentionally refrained from it. This drove his approval rating higher because his apolitical nature and generally clean public image gave the media and fans little by which to drag him down. When you put your politics out there, however, you'll receive blowback. This is why LBJ receives blowback. This is why Curt Schilling receives blowback. And so on. The middle is the path of least resistance to bipartisan stardom on a national scale, that's the Jordan path.

_________________
Successful calls:

Kyrie Irving will never win anything as a team's alpha: check
T.rubisky is a bust: check
Ben Simmons is a liability: check
The Fields Cult is dumb: double check

2013 CSFMB ROY

Given LeBron's depth, maybe it's best if he stay out of political commentary. That goes for guys like Schilling as well.

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Why are only 14 percent of black CPS 11th-graders proficient in English?

I think that ignores the changing way that advertisers seek fans. Nike pays Colin Kaepernick millions of dollars a year to not even play football. The political statements that Lebron makes are even more calculated than Jordan's "I'm not saying anything" brand of politics. It became obvious when Lebron got so mad about someone else in the NBA saying something about China. He was leading the charge against him because he knew that it was going to cost him and others money.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

Sure, I don't disagree that "social justice" has been monetized to a large degree, particulary this year following the Floyd protests. I do think that's too recent a framework through which to view LBJ's advocacy. Basically a large part of the hate going LBJ's way is based on his politics, just like Schilling is reviled for his politics. So in some ways the dislike of either in a non-on the field/court way is dependent on your personal politics. However, because people like Jordan and Brady seemingly have no politics, there are less constraints to the public at large embracing them as heros whose accomplishments transcend sports. LBJ could have been like that had he chose the Jordan path, but now he's being propped up by what I'd say are fans/media who like his on the court stuff and don't mind his politics, and then certain media figures who push him forward because of his politics.

_________________
Successful calls:

Kyrie Irving will never win anything as a team's alpha: check
T.rubisky is a bust: check
Ben Simmons is a liability: check
The Fields Cult is dumb: double check

2013 CSFMB ROY

It was 2016 when he first endorsed a President, and it was seemingly as much about Trump as it was about Hillary.

The hate for Lebron started with what he did in going to the Heat.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

But I don't think people outside the sports world would hate him for the Heat thing if he didn't have liberal politics. Just like no one would care about Schilling if he wasn't openly conservative.

_________________
Successful calls:

Kyrie Irving will never win anything as a team's alpha: check
T.rubisky is a bust: check
Ben Simmons is a liability: check
The Fields Cult is dumb: double check

2013 CSFMB ROY

Rick is right, vegan is wrong.

My point, and the one shakes agreed with, was about on court and how a champion behaves.

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Sex isn't dirty, sex isn't a crime. It's a loving act between two or more consenting adults.

-Hank Kingsley

What format do you believe would have been preferable? Do you think the bubble gave Lebron an unfair advantage? Do you think they should have just scrapped the season?

Genuinely curious

They should have scrapped the season.

It's ridiculous they still haven't held the 2020 draft and it's the middle of October

_________________
Fare you well, fare you well
I love you more than words can tell
Listen to the river sing sweet songs
To rock my soul

i'm coming around to that line of thinking...i think they should have just cancelled it as well. Now we have discussions about how if they start in Jan-Feb the 'normal' schedule will be perpetually off kilter unless they shorten the season.

I think the season ended in March. The attempt to reclaim it months later were a corruption. Better to be intellectually honest and call it the COVID Exhibition or something like that rather than brand it the 2019-20 championship bubble. It is no more closely related to the 2019-20 NBA season than the 21 season will be.

The resurrection of the season certainly gave him, probably above all players, an advantage. Older people require longer periods of relaxation for healing. The format allowed him to be at his absolute peak during the "playoffs", which he would not have been under ordinary circumstances. I haven't thought about the format in terms of bubbling and whether he was advantaged by it. I would think more mature players found it less disorienting but that is just off the top of my head.

They can do whatever they want. The league has a right to try to recoup lost profits from the disruption. What they presented was a shadow of an actual NBA championship tournament. It is like a show changing the actor playing the lead midway through the season without it being addressed to the audience.

The same is true for the NHL

MLB is a little different in that they never started the season. However, I certainly won't consider this year's "champion" to be worthy of being held in the same esteem as that of a full format season.

_________________
O judgment! Thou art fled to brutish beasts,
And men have lost their reason.

I think that's really the bottom line...if they had been able to restart say 2-3-4 weeks later, it would have been fine. But to start it 4 months later, you're right, it has no connection to the previous games.

Would ya'll have preferred virtual bowling? I thought the NBA restart and baseball injected some much-needed distraction from all the covid and politics bullshit, and especially the politicized covid bullshit.

_________________
Successful calls:

Kyrie Irving will never win anything as a team's alpha: check
T.rubisky is a bust: check
Ben Simmons is a liability: check
The Fields Cult is dumb: double check

2013 CSFMB ROY

Do you consider yourself a fan of the NBA?

It was a no-brainer financial decision for the people in charge of it. Not sure how to read other motives into it. Would I have preferred it to end in March? Sure. I’ve said many times the gap in the restart killed my interest the season for me, but $$$.

No. I prefer college basketball but both are still far behind NFL and MLB for my interest.

_________________
O judgment! Thou art fled to brutish beasts,
And men have lost their reason.

I mean, the best team won....

Might be the last Finals game LeBron plays, depending on what Unibrow does....

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Ба́бушка гада́ла, да на́двое сказа́ла—то ли до́ждик, то ли снег, то ли бу́дет, то ли нет.

Yeah, and that certainly comes across and I’d expect you to think the way you are.

As a fan of the league, I was ecstatic they came back. Calling the return corrupt doesn’t make much sense to me, since I’m a fan. As an outside, detached observer who isn’t a fan, any traction you might have is reasonable. But you aren’t who they are catering to.

as I said previously, I'm not deluded into thinking this MLB season holds the same weight as any other in the history of the game. It's an exhibition season.

_________________
O judgment! Thou art fled to brutish beasts,
And men have lost their reason.

But why so negative ? How old are you. Gotta be over 60 I’m guessing

I think he honestly believes his GOAT status is secure after this one. He's definitely not going to be able to latch on to a superstar again after his King James act in the Players' Association meeting.

Golden State back healthy next season, with a #2 pick as a trade chip.

Durant and Kyrie in Brooklyn, with rumors of adding Beal. Brookyln beyond the disastrous Pierce/Garnett window, so they have all their 1st rounders on the table going forward as trade bait.

Morant, Clark, JJJ in Memphis, Luka and Porzingis in Dallas, Murray and Joker in Denver...all gonna give Lebron et al more grief going forward. Maybe even Zion down in NO, if he can stay healthy. And Phoenix went 8-0 in the bubble.

Wouldn't be surprised if Lebron and/or Kawhi jump back to the Eastern Conference when their current deals run out. Kawhi has an out after next season, Lebron might too? Not sure if Lebron's last year is a player option.

The NBA is in some real trouble. The viewership collapsed. The political stuff is what it is, and it certainly alienated some people. But there seems to be more going on than that. A documentary about the Jordan views had more viewers than the current live Finals with someone who is supposed to be the greatest player of all time.

As an indoor game who knows when fans will be back too. LeBron is not going to leave the league in a good place.

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Why are only 14 percent of black CPS 11th-graders proficient in English?

There's some good basketball going on despite some of the metrics driving some non-entertaining play. I won't bother watching Houston.

I don’t think the league is in trouble at all. I understand ratings are down but I don’t think the league is in any kind of peril. The younger generations consume the content very differently. But the engagement is there via Twitter and fantasy etc. Obviously if Silver has his druthers ratings would be at an all time high and all demographics would be consuming the product across all media formats.

But I think if the NBA were a stock it would be a great buy and hold investment.

As far as the social justice stuff...clearly it has alienated a certain segment of the audience, or potential audience, but I don’t think the KEY demographics are being alienated by it. Like it or not, I think Silver and company has a responsibility to align itself with those movements, since it is a player driven league and it’s what the players wanted.

In short, the NBA will probably never be the ratings powerhouse that the NFL is but why does that matter to those that are already a fan? In my view that’s just something detractors like to hurl at the league like “see. See how much you fucked up. I told you so.” But I’m inclined to believe that the large majority of those saying that haven’t been real fans of the league for the better part of 10-20 years anyways.