The Miami Heat has had some excellent players over the years – non better than LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh.
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The state of Florida has had some of the best players to ever suit up in an NBA game, and play in their cities – a couple of them in Orlando, and many in Miami. While Orlando has always been that lesser-known child, Miami has been the hub of all things Basketball. The state of Florida may be infamous, but not its basketball though. It was made famous by a trio who terrorized the nation for 4 years.
LeBron James made the move from Cleveland to Miami in one of the most dramatic and stunning announcements. Players of LeBron’s stature have never moved teams, and even if they did, they never got their TV show as an announcement. Nobody in the league knew where he would go, not even the players. Dwyane Wade was seen jumping with joy when Bron announced his “decision” to move down south.
Thus began an epic best friend duo, who brought in a third from way up north. Chris Bosh was a Toronto Raptor since the day he set foot in the league, becoming an all-star 5 times in 7 years. When he was brought in, the fans lost their minds. This was the first time they were watching three multiple all-stars teaming up together, border lining on blasphemy.
But fickle is the mind of a sports fan – they seem to have the attention span of a goldfish. For just 2 years prior, Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, Rajon Rondo, and Ray Allen were doing the same thing. They teamed up to win a super team ring, but when LBJ made the move, he was vilified.
LeBron James angered a whole nation with just one announcement – it is still considered a snake move
Why do people discredit success with such ease? The big three may have promised to win 5,6,7 championships, but why is a statement given for a promotional purpose being held against them? Have you ever heard of an athlete who doesn’t think they want to win everything every year? 4 straight runs to the finals, and 2 championships are still incredibly difficult to do.
The only other team in the last decade to go back to back has been the Golden State Warriors. Even they would have struggled if Kevin Durant had not teamed up with Stephen Curry to win his two championships. Yes, the 2011 NBA final was a choke job by Bron, but that is about it. They still were incredible all season long, and every single series in the playoffs bar the finals.
2014 could still be considered a tough match-up, but the arguments for underperformance can be made as well. The King was getting locked up by a young Klaw, and it was not good for the PR.
As Anthony Edwards said, LeBron James’ greatness has been taken lightly, and there will come a time when what he does for fun, will once again be considered a career achievement for the normal. The only drawback of success is people begin to expect that from you as your new normal. There can only ever be one champion a year. Kobe Bryant lost 2 championships, and Michael Jordan never even made it to the finals for his first 7 years.
