A View From the Inside: Why LeBron Meant Everything.

When looking at Lebron’s decision to go to the Miami Heat, there are hundreds of views you can take. You could be a fan of the Cavs, Bulls, Knicks, Nets, 76ers, Heat, or any other team that was tied up in James’ free agency circus. But to me, a Cleveland born Cavs fan, there are only two views: Cleveland or not. I’ve restrained myself so far from writing or openly speaking about Lebron’s move, mainly because I didn’t want to give in to my emotions without taking a step back and objectively observing the situation. However, almost 3 weeks since Lebron made his announcement that he wasn’t going to stay in Cleveland, I am still in shock and disbelief. And there is something besides not having the NBA’s most talented player on our team anymore; what bothers me the most about the whole situation is the rest of the world’s reaction to Cleveland’s reaction.

Immature. Selfish. Over reacting drama queens. The list goes on of how the world described Cleveland’s reaction. But as a Clevelander, I feel like there is some explaining to do to the rest of the world, something I can only hope would make them understand why we had the reaction we did. It’s easy for them to say, “Oh, it’s because they lost their hometown hero. And he did it in front of the entire nation on live television.” But listen up WORLD, here is the inside story on why Cleveland is so devastated on losing Lebron James to the Miami Heat.

BECAUSE WE LOST OUR HOME TOWN HERO. Ok World, you win on this one. It’s devastating enough to lose the “Chosen One,” let alone when he was born in your city and would be considered the ultimate hero had he won you a championship. I’m 22 years old, and as lame as this sounds (which hopefully will be better understood by reading the rest of this article) Lebron James was my hero. I looked up to him even though he is only 3 years older than me. I saw him as a hardworking, dedicated hometown hero that would someday make me and the rest of the city proud. And not to throw away his accomplishments with the Cavs, he did make me proud. He made me proud to be a Clevelander, proud that we had something that no one else had (for once…). He was my favorite player of any sport, of any time period. Why? Because he was the best, yet he was one of us. He was part of a breed that had been defeated countless times throughout the decades, yet had a spirit of a true winner. There is something to be said for an affinity caused by hometown pride: it’s perhaps the strongest connection we have. There have been countless novels written about heroes saving their home town. It could even be metaphor-ed to the Olympics and national pride (it’s the same concept). But to lose someone that was A) The best at what he did and B) A native to your hometown, it’s down right devastating.

HE DID IT ON NATIONAL TELEVISION. Alright, World, you take round 2 as well. As a Clevelander, when I heard that Lebron was going to be announcing his free agency choice on national television, it gave me hope. Even through reports that he had already placed a bid on a house in South Beach and that he was 95% going to play for the Heat, I, with the majority of Cleveland fans, remained confident that he would stay. [Thought process: boy grows up in Cleveland; boy understands Cleveland’s pain of losing; boy grows to be superstar and savior; boy says where he is going in front of the world; boy stays and brings glory to his hometown.] Most Clevelanders are pretty nice people. For the most part, if any of them had a chance to bring fame and glory home, they would do it, and they would play it up on a national scale to let everyone know that Cleveland Rocks. However, instead of glory and fame, we were stunned, humiliated and heartbroken. Stunned that one of our own would make a big fuss about his choice and not stay with us. Humiliated that even our home grown Messiah thinks it’s impossible to win here, and letting the entire nation know about it. Heartbroken: no explanation needed.

BASKETBALL IS NOT JUST A BUSINESS. Stop saying that. I hate it. I understand that it makes a considerable amount of revenue. However, the pride of winning a championship cannot be bought. Oh yeah, and neither can a legacy. World: “Come on, Cleveland, it’s just a sport! It’s just a game!” Clevelander: “NO. IT. IS. NOT.” To try and belittle any kind of nationally recognized sport to just a recreational activity is wrong. It’s more than money, it’s about pride. Look at the Olympics or the World Cup. If money were the only importance to sports, then these events (where players do not make any money from the event) would not exist. There is an aura around sports that has something more to do with pride and happiness than money, even if we are insanely ripped off for that nosebleed playoff ticket.

WE CARED ABOUT HIM. Understood: Lebron has the freedom to play wherever he wants. However, what we watched on “The Decision” was a man flushing any hope of being “the greatest player ever” down the drain. By joining forces in Miami, anything that Lebron accomplishes in the future will be surrounded by controversy because he did not do it on his own. On a selfish note: had he gone to any other team, the pain Cleveland felt would have been dulled at least a little bit. Had he been the greatest on a different team, we could still claim him as our own accomplishment, the springboard to the most successful basketball player that ever lived. On a caring note: we were devastated by his choice because his clean reputation as a player and a person were gone in an instant. He was instantly portrayed as an arrogant and egotistical maniac. And when a great reputation is destroyed with a person that represents your entire city the way that Lebron James represented Cleveland, it can only destroy the reputation of that city as well.

THE PROMISE. The world criticized Dan Gilbert’s letter on 7/8/10. However, his letter made Cleveland more united than it had been since 9/11/01. And yes, a SPORT did that. Any Clevelander that read his letter that night felt that justice was going to be served. That our time was finally going to come. About 12 hours later we all realized how dumb it was, but nothing can take away the pride and unity we all felt from Dan Gilbert’s “Promise” and his words of retribution. It gave Cleveland something to cling on to during an emotional free fall. While this letter kept the Cleveland spirit and hope alive, it destroyed any chance of Lebron ever reuniting with his hometown.

THE ECONOMY. This does not include the revenue that the NBA makes off of Lebron James, since that money is never really seen again by common folk. I’m talking about the life of downtown and the reputation that Cleveland had because of their basketball team. Cleveland was on the map for six years. I went to China in 2006 and the first thing that I saw when I got off the plane in Shanghai was a Cleveland Cavaliers poster Lebron James on it. Would any Chinese people ever even heard of Cleveland if it weren’t for Lebron? The Indians had a record breaking sell-out streak even after they went downhill, which is why I think that the downtown life will still thrive for a few years if the Cavs are even mildly decent. But it will still suffer from not having a world spectacle in your city performing night in and night out.

THE SHOT. THE FUMBLE. ’95 AND 97 WORLD SERIES. AND NOW, THE DECISION. Why does ESPN and every other sports broadcast feels the need to rub it in and play 29098324090923094832 clips of Cleveland sports teams losing in the final seconds of championship games… and remind most Clevelanders that they haven’t seen Cleveland win anything since before they were born. Every time it happens (which is whenever Cleveland is losing any kind of playoff game), you can almost hear a unanimous cry from any Clevelander in the room: YES BROADCASTERS, PLEASE. PLEASE REMIND US AGAIN. REMIND US OF THAT TIME WHERE WE WERE SO CLOSE THAT I WENT TO BED CRYING. Not only did they do this in the NBA playoffs several times this year, but they felt the need to do it again during “The Decision,” BEFORE Lebron had announced his decision, as if he were the last hope of the city ever winning anything. This is just one more thing that Cleveland can add to its’ resume of close misses, embarrassments and losses.

So when the world is criticizing Cleveland for being selfish and overreacting, please think of what I have said here. To Cleveland, basketball is more than just a game; It’s a symbol of pride and a chance to be proud of our city, a city that has no such experience of being proud. To Cleveland, Lebron James was more than just a human being; he was our face, our hero and our brother. Now that you see where Clevelanders are coming from, I’d like to ask you, World, what is the correct response when you are nationally stunned, humiliated, and heartbroken?

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