Check out these two stat lines:
38 points, 8 assists, 5 rebounds, 0 turnovers
28 points, 9 assists, 13 rebounds, 11 turnovers
Guess which one was LeBron James line and guess which one belongs to that of the Cavaliers starting five. And you still need to rationalize why he left?
Not only did LeBron outscore his former teams starters in his return to Cleveland on Thursday night, he almost outscored the entire team in the third quarter alone (24-25). This was the screaming explanation for why LeBron is in Miami this season and not Cleveland (as well as Dwyane Wade’s 22 points, 9 rebounds, and 9 assists).
The Cavs just stink, with or without LeBron. This was their Superbowl, and they showed up in the same capacity as these guys did for all of the LeBron led playoff runs over the past few years. Mo Williams and Antawn Jamison, this was your chance to make LeBron pay for thinking he could do better without you, and the gruesome twosome combines for 22 points on 6 for 18 shooting from the floor…sounds like a Cavs playoff game to me.
I’m not even writing this to really shout out LeBron’s performance, obviously he was going to come out and play incredible, he’s the best player in the league. I’m writing this to really point out why LeBron left. The way the Cavs played last night is how they played in so many big games during the Cavs run of near supremacy in the Eastern Conference.
Just think if LeBron was still on the Cavs. LeBron drops 38 points and 8 assists, while his two other best players put up underwhelming performances, and a guy off the bench gets hot to help put the Cavs over the top (Boobie Gibson put in 21). Why would LeBron waste however many more years playing with these guys when he could play with Dwyane Wade? Wade almost put up a triple-double in the biggest game of his teammates season, and afterwards said the Heat were exceptionally focused to back up their teammate. LeBron’s former teammates never backed him up, and although he always shared the ball and tried to get the most out of them, he knew he couldn’t win with those guys on his side.
The point I’m trying to convey is that no great player has ever done it by himself. Jordan needed Pippen, Olajuwon needed Jordan (to retire), and don’t even get me going on Kobe. LeBron came so close with these goons that make up the Cavs roster, and while it would’ve been great to see him be the exception to the rule and really win on his own, the NBA has too many good teams for that to happen anytime soon and LeBron knew it.
There’s still no denying that he went about leaving the wrong way, and Cleveland’s ill-will toward him is understandable, but him leaving Cleveland for Miami is the most understandable factor in this equation. Not that one game can really make sense of everything, but Thursday nights reunion went the way it should have. And if you think there’s any kind of LeBron/Cavs rivalry you are sadly mistaken.
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