Did Lebron James forfeit his throne?

At age 18 Lebron James was selected as the #1 overall pick of the 2003 NBA draft. Throughout his high school career it became obvious the amount of talent he possessed and thus did not even need to attend college to begin his basketball career. He was drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers, a team who was struggling to free itself from obscurity, and King James was the key to that. In the seven years since he was drafted he turned a mediocre team into a playoff contender and a team with the best regular season record two years running. Throughout those seven years the team has indeed improved and pieces were brought in to compliment the “King”. But after yet another embarrassing exit from the playoffs Lebron decided to ditch his hometown team and signup with the Miami Heat.

Seven years and no championships, who could blame him for leaving, right? Well, it took Michael Jordan the same amount of time before he won his first title. There is a lot of controversy surrounding Lebron decision and most of it is justly due. Most of Cleveland feels betrayed specially since Lebron was born and raised in Ohio and after a many horrible years of Ohio sports it seemed Lebron was the chosen one to overcome that slump.

The truth is that Lebron will definitely win some rings alongside the Miami Heat, but none of those will be as valuable as they would have been in Cleveland. The many hall of fame greats lead their teams through thick and thin and lead them to victory. So far Lebron has not proven that he can do that. He left his own team and like a mercenary, joined Dwayne Wade’s team, and we all know wade is “king” of this city. So what does that make Lebron? Prince?

There is no doubt that this Heat team is now a shoe-in contender for the next six years, but as far as Lebron’s King status is concerned, it seems to me he gave up the throne. That in itself should earn respect though. He came to Miami to get paid less and no longer be the leader of the team, that takes guts and a little bit of modesty. Maybe Lebron wasn’t suited for that role. That then casts a doubt on his leadership skills, and where will the put him when he’s put side by side with the all time greats?

Now don’t get me wrong. This is far from a Lebron James hate speech. He is clearly one of the greatest players now and has the potential to be one of the greatest ever. He is only 25 years old and was placed in a leadership position at an age where other players are still being rookies. Maybe this leadership that it seems he lacks has yet to come to fruition. Maybe a slice of humble pie here in Miami behind Wade can help him on that.