Let me preface this column by saying that I was not raised to be a "sports guy." I wasn't forced to watch football every Sunday as a child, and my father wasn't one of those dads who screamed himself hoarse at my Little League games and made me cry in the dugout - that was my mom. My parents encouraged me to play sports because they didn't want a fat son, and I played the least American sport of them all - soccer - for most of my life. Nevertheless, I feel obligated to give you my completely biased, uninformed, and poorly constructed "outsider" opinion on the NBA playoffs - and why I'll be cheering for the trolls of professional basketball, the Miami Heat.
The Heat recently opened their 2011 playoff campaign with 97-89 home win against the Philadelphia 76ers, and yes, I was - and will continue to be - cheering for them this postseason. What can I say? I'd like to see them win it all. I'm one of those people who loves to watch "The Empire Strikes Back" because you get to see the bad guys actually win in a movie for once. You can call LeBron James a sellout, a traitor - maybe even the NBA version of Benedict Arnold - but what would you do in his position? Was "The Decision" a horrible idea? Yes. Does he probably wish he could take it all back? Hell yes. At least he donated all of the event's proceeds to charity.
The way I see it, LeBron had two choices. He could have stayed in Cleveland, which would have been the "honorable" thing to do. He would have continued to carry a team on his back with the strength and skill of two men - maybe even Two and a Half Men - by himself, in an attempt to win a championship, and he probably would have died in the process. Or, he could move to South Beach, play great basketball with his friends, exponentially increase his chances of winning a championship and probably have a life most of us would envy, enjoying all that Miami has to offer - the beaches, the food, the women and, most importantly, the close proximity to Disney World. Who wouldn't go to Miami? No offense to Cleveland, but it's not exactly party central. I think by now most of us have seen the Cleveland YouTube tourism video by now - if not, you need to look it up. Miami offers a better social life and a better team. Sounds like the definition of bi-winning to me.
Let's not also forget that LeBron took a multimillion-dollar pay cut to go to Miami. I think that says a lot when you consider that we might not have an NFL season next year at all because football players are, among other things, holding out for more money. LeBron put his ego aside, gave up being the center of attention in Cleveland and took his talents to South Beach because he loves the game and wants to win. He didn't sell out and abandon his long-time team for more money. He left them because he did the best he could with them, but realized they weren't going anywhere good anytime soon. He made the tough decision to cut his losses and try something new.
Now of course, if he leaves Miami in a few years and goes somewhere else looking for more money, then I'll be eating my words. Nevertheless, I would like nothing more than to see LeBron spend the rest of his days in Miami and have a long and successful career. In a league usually filled with Iversons, Kobes and Arenases, how can you not like the Heat? They're not getting T'ed up every night like Dwight Howard, and they're not sucker-punching fans like Ron Artest. Heck, they could be banging seven gram rocks every weekend. Instead, they're just there to play basketball and win.
Yes, LeBron left Cleveland because all he cares about is winning. Sure, it sounds scummy, but what professional athlete isn't in it to win? If the Heat were playing to lose, they'd be called the Cubs. I would much prefer to cheer for a team that actually wants to win than for one that is just in it for the money. At the end of the day, Bosh, Wade and LeBron are all great competitors who play their best every game and would kill to win a championship together. They're among the league's most hated players right now - but why? Because they want to win? If winning is wrong, then maybe Charlie Sheen and LeBron don't want to be right. I'll be rooting for the Heat these playoffs, hoping they go all the way to the championships and end up, duh, winning.
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