The Case Against LeBron in Cleveland-Part II

Yesterday in Part I, I laid out the off-court issues which have plagued LeBron James this summer and why James's unsettling behavior has become worrisome for Cavs fans. Today in Part II, I'll make the case that the Cavs will never reach their goals on the hardwood while the King is still ruling the Cleveland Cavaliers. That's right, I'm boldly going where no sane man has gone before, predicting that LeBron James will never win a championship in Cleveland. But, not just because of the strange trends in LeBron's behavior, but because the Cavs simply won't be good enough.

Before I begin with Part II, I have to thank LeBron James for adding one more episode to his long strange summer. Today, news broke of the admission of marijuana use by James in high school because he couldn't deal with his increasing fame. Oh wait, that just gives him more in common with the other X% of the NBA that smoke the reefer, my mistake. Anyways, let's really get down to the heart of my "crazy" prediction, the fact that LeBron will simply not be able to lead his "hometown" Cavs to the title Cleveland craves desperately.

Naturally, we have to start with the King's on-court performance in the 2009 Conference Finals against Orlando, which exposed the weaknesses of the Cleveland LeBrons. The first explanation for the loss was the inability of Cleveland to match up with Hedo Turkoglu and Rashard Lewis. The truth is, the Cavs had the perfect player to match up with these long, quick forwards; a guy 6' 8", strong as a linebacker, and quick as a point guard. The only problem was, LeBron James wasn't up to the challenge of playing defense. Do you think Michael Jordan, or even Kobe Bryant would let the same player continuously torch his team in a playoff game? Of course not. But, every time the Cavs needed a stop in the series, LeBron came up empty. Until LeBron decides to raise his defensive game to an all-NBA level, this team will suffer.

The Cavs offense wasn't much better in the Conference Finals. Sure, LeBron averaged 38.5 PPG over the 6 games, but his great numbers hide how truly awful the Cavs offense was against a below-average defense, save Dwight Howard. In actuality, the Cavs were one miracle shot away from being swept by the Magic. Role players like Delonte West and Mo Williams were never in rhythm because LeBron constantly dominated the basketball.

At the end of close games, it was the classic Cavs offense, give the ball to the King at the top of the key and let him go 1 on 5. Guess what? That offense hasn't really succeeded in the NBA Playoffs, ever! When LeBron wasn't getting stripped by Mickael Pietrus or stuffed by Dwight Howard, he was dishing to his now meek supporting cast who failed to deliver. On the other hand, Michael Jordan installed confidence in role players like Paxson, Kukoc, and Kerr so that they could deliver in crunch time. Even Kobe began to trust his teammates more in this postseason, helping the Lakers win the title.

What good is a superstar if he can't make his teammates better when it counts in the postseason? Anyone can put up great numbers and a lot of wins during the regular season, but no player is good enough to win an NBA Championship on his own. As long as LeBron is in Cleveland, fans can expect the same failures to repeat themselves time and again. LeBron will try to carry the burden on his own, and will continually fall short.

Also, don't be fooled into thinking the personnel moves LeBron has made this offseason will help matters next season. That's right, Danny Ferry is only a puppet GM at this point, catering to the King's every wish. Would any other GM be willing to commit $50 million to an offensively inept role player like Anderson Varejao...wait, don't answer that. LeBron clearly has orchestrated personnel moves in Cleveland for the last two years because the franchise doesn't have a choice. LeBron is certainly behind the foolish signing of his friend Andy and the trade for the Big Q, which of course, won't pan out as well as the surely hilarious pregame escapades and press conferences. To put it bluntly, the Cavs and the fans of Cleveland are hostages of the King, with no choice but to submit to his will, or risk losing him. If that's the case, would losing him really be the worst thing to happen to Cleveland?

If the past few months have proven anything, it's that things have maxed out for the Cavs and LeBron James. Now, I concede that losing LeBron James in the summer of 2010 would be initially a devastating financial and emotional blow to the Cavs and the city of Cleveland. But, the question true fans of the Cavs, not just fans of LeBron, must consider is the long-term health of a franchise that is held hostage by one player.

There is currently no athlete under as much pressure to deliver a championship to his city than LeBron and that pressure will only mount with every passing day that LeBron doesn't deliver a title. We've already seen how erratic LeBron's behavior has been this summer, think of how much more potential adversity faces LeBron and the Cavs when they fail to reach the promised land.

Think of the freedom LeBron, the Cavs, and the city of Cleveland would experience if each wasn't dependent on the other. LeBron would be free to become the global icon he desires without the pressure of being Cleveland's messiah. The Cavs would eventually be able to build a complete team, again a TEAM, that could once again compete for a championship. And finally, the fans of Cleveland would be saved the torture of reliving the nightmare they are doomed to witness...the false hope of the hometown boy winning it all, only to be let down time and time again. Although, maybe the King's Witnesses would rather be continuously crushed by Cleveland sports heroes, they're probably used to it by now.