Soon after LeBron James was drafted in 2003, a massive Nike-sponsored banner of James laid upon a brick building in downtown Cleveland, Ohio.
It famously read, “We Are All Witnesses.”
As a self-proclaimed Cavaliers fan, I often get asked, “Are you a Cavs fan? Or a LeBron fan?”
Make no mistake. I am a Cavs fan, and have been for years. If you ask me, however, when I became a Cavs fans, the answer would be May 31, 2007, when LeBron James scored 25 consecutive points to beat the mighty Pistons in game five of the 2007 Eastern Conference Finals.
Although James had already proven he had earned the hype he garnered from the time he was 17 years old — being on the cover of Sports Illustrated — this was his coronating moment. The faces on the Detroit Pistons said it all. They were stunned. Pistons’ bench players stood with their mouths agape, taking in what they were watching, like they were fans in the stands, as the 22-year-old James scored at will.
The Pistons didn’t play badly either. LeBron scored 16 of his 25 consecutive points while his team faced a deficit. Detroit played a great game, but LeBron was simply unstoppable. It was his coming out party and what a party it was.
The Cavs would go on to to be swept by the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA Finals, but James’ Game five performance in Detroit was the kind of performance that suggested there was more to come….
… And there was.
On June 7, 2012, LeBron — now a member of the Miami Heat — faced a 3-2 deficit against the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals. He was on the cusp of another Finals appearance having lost in 2011 to the Dallas Mavericks, but the “Big Three” of Boston stood in his way.
I loathed LeBron for his “decision” to leave Cleveland and desperately wanted him to fail once again, but he didn’t care about what I wanted. He wanted a ring and James put on one of the most impressive performances of his career, scoring 45 points, grabbing 15 rebounds and dishing five assists.
It was in this moment that nostalgia set in. This was the 2007 ECF all over again, and just like Detroit in 2007, the Celtics couldn’t do anything to stop the King. Miami won the game forcing a game seven on its home floor, and then went on to demolish the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Finals. It makes you wonder if the Heat were one bad night in Boston from being a failed experiment, but LeBron made sure that wouldn’t happen.
When critics compare LeBron to Jordan or Kobe, in terms of being a clutch performer, they bash him. Sure, he’s struggled at times and may not always have the “mindset” that Jordan or Kobe had. He may also not be a “closer” like they were, but what LeBron is though is the ultimate never-say-die, never-count-out, and never-bet-against player in the NBA.
When he kicks his game to its highest gear, opposing teams are at his mercy and can’t do anything but hope he fails. He is in his own category of clutch performers. The 2016 NBA finals was the culmination of everything LeBron had done in the prior years.
Nine years and one month after his epic performance in Detroit, LeBron and the Cavs faced a 3-1 series deficit against the defending champion, record setting 73-9 Golden State Warriors. No team had ever come back from a 3-1 deficit in an NBA Finals, but LeBron put his team and his city on his back carrying Cleveland to a championship.
It was a monumental comeback that brought a title to a city that had not won a major sports title since 1964.
Jordan may have more rings, so in the record books he is better. Jordan also never lost in an NBA finals, made countless clutch buzzer-beaters, and was the ultimate competitor; but LeBron’s single accomplishment is greater than any of Jordan’s single accomplishments.
We’ve debated this question for years: Is James better than Jordan? LeBron has always had the stats, the awards, and the overall game (in terms of abilities and impact) to suggest he is one of the greatest players of all time. Now he has a cornerstone moment that anchors his legacy forever. Anything LeBron accomplishes from this point on is just more icing on a cake that’s already made for a king.
Despite not being fan of his decision, or being a fan of the Heat, or even rooting for him; I still loved watching him play. I was bitter that Miami got to have him and I couldn’t watch him on my team, but when he chose to return to Cleveland it was almost like it never happened.
It ended up being Cleveland who got to “witness” LeBron’s best moment at the same time the world “witnessed” Cleveland celebrate its best moment.
So, in the end, you can’t be a Cavs fan without being a LeBron fan. The two ca’t be separated, like a king and his kingdom. LeBron James is Cleveland, Ohio and one of the greatest athletes to ever play the game.
