"I Didn't Do It!"

"I didn't do it."

Come along with me, my friends, as I take a nostalgic journey that might possibly add to the intrigue currently surrounding the Cleveland Cavaliers and the supposed king, LeBron James.

It wasn't that many years ago when James, a high school senior at Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary's and a preordained superstar created by Sports Illustrated, suddenly was blessed with a "gift" from his financially-challenged mother. The gift, of course, was only a brand-new Hummer H2, estimated to have cost in the $50,000 range--typically not affordable to most Ohio families let alone to one who had proclaimed his life story of having had little while growing up in the city.

When this incident occurred, the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA, for easy reference), led by Clair Muscaro, a respected school and athletic administrator for many years, launched an investigation. Sparing the details, the ultimate decision was that James would be suspended for receiving illegal benefits, as defined in the OHSAA codes. Of course, in the Akron area, that decision reeked of "trying to blame the star," so the situation quickly escalated into a legal challenge and a negative barrage against the OHSAA, its controlling board, and its commissioner. Even though LeBron did ultimately serve a brief suspension, he was reinstated; I never quite knew all the legal details of that scenario (his mother "proved" that he had a legitimate bank loan), but I do remember that it smelled fishy. LeBron, in his infinite attempt to draw attention to himself, during the game he was suspended (vs. Canton McKinley, if I recall correctly), reportedly brought out a remote Hummer and zipped it around parts of the court during pregame, probably to show his displeasure for his image being cast negatively. Of course, LeBron and his associates decried everything; the counterargument was that the school parking lot was full of cars given to kids whose parents had bought the cars for them. The implied message was that criticizing LeBron for having a Hummer was a subtle form of racism and unfair criticism; in short, he was merely innocent.

As the years rolled on, most of us in Ohio fell victim to the magic of LeBron; he truly was and remains an outstanding player, one who has led the Cavaliers to two NBA Finals. Yes, he disappointed us when he headed south to Miami, but, in fairness, the NBA is a business, and he had an opportunity to improve himself financially and professionally--can't fault him for that. Of course, we were bitter simply because we were and remain so hungry for a championship in northeast Ohio; when he left, our dreams went with him as did the Cavaliers'.  In time, however, he returned after having achieved a financial pinnacle that we cannot fathom and two championships in his belt. Again, much to his credit, he came home to give us what we so badly desire. While his incessant dribbling wears me out, I refuse to be critical of his basketball skills nor his generosity toward those less fortunate than he. As an ambassador for the NBA and as a true philanthropist, he is clearly a member of an elite few. However, as someone who proclaims he has never disrespected a coach, sorry, I don't buy it; in truth, he has done it throughout his career--perhaps it is simply a matter of how one defines "disrespect." Again, let's resume the nostalgic journey.

A few names need to be mentioned: Former coach Mike Brown--like or dislike him--was clearly not a favorite of LeBron's. If Brown were ever to open up, I suspect he could share many opportunities where LeBron outright defied him. On record, not much there, but LeBron always said what was "right," so as to avoid personal criticism. Erik Spoelstra, Miami's coach, butted heads with LeBron, even being shouldered by him on one occasion while James was walking to the huddle; Chris Bosh, an all-star level player, never really fit with LeBron's style--I have to think he was somewhat happy and relieved when LeBron headed out of Miami. My point is simple: he has disrespected many coaches, and I suspect many players.

All this brings us to the current situation with David Blatt, recently fired coach of the Cavaliers, who never appeared to be embraced by LeBron, despite Blatt's numerous compliments that James was the best player in the world and the Cavaliers' team revolved around him. I could go on, but it became painfully clear to me early this season when LeBron simply walked off the floor while play was still ongoing and recently when he spent most of the fourth quarter on the bench constantly talking to assistant coach Tyronn Lue--it was clear from James's nonverbal expressions and his ever-present talking literally out of the side of his mouth that the lack of support for yet another coach had surfaced again. Despite James's contention that he had nothing to do with Blatt's ouster, I do not believe it. The prevailing creed is that "the players just didn't like Blatt" and "he didn't know what he was doing." Yeah, right. Perhaps the discontent started with LeBron not liking him--think that might have carried a little weight in that locker room? Critics say that Blatt didn't stand up to James; if he had, I suspect he would have been fired long before last week. Remember this key point: the Cavaliers' general manager is not Pat Riley, a man who refused to allow LeBron to intimidate him. I will let you read between those lines.

No, my friends, LeBron might not have been informed or consulted about Blatt's firing, but his fingerprints are all over that situation. A man of integrity lost his job . . . again, because of LeBron and his power. Many, including me, are in the midst of choosing whether we want to go all in to back the Cavaliers yet again. As stated, I get it that professional sports is a business, but, for the life of me, I cannot get past that LeBron's power continues to be an undermining disaster. Perhaps we will fall victim to our desire to win, but my thoughts are quite simple: Regardless of how badly we want that championship, LeBron's negative vibes are rearing their ugly heads. Can I see it? Nope, but I feel it. When it's all over, we will not have a championship banner to gloat about, but we will forever debate whether LeBron's time in Cleveland was worth it or not. 

Remember these words: I didn't do it.