LeBron James: The Burden of "The King"

Right now, there are over 7 billion people living on this Earth. About .000001% of those people, or approximately 10,000, can say they play in some sort of professional basketball league, and only about 450 of those individuals play in the elite league known as the NBA. Just one of those individuals boasts 4 MVP Awards, 9 All-Star Game appearances, 2 Olympic Gold Medals, an NBA Rookie of the Year award, as well as a Finals MVP trophy, along with numerous other accolades. Just one player's decision on where to play a sport will ever again be known as THE decision. Just one man in the sporting world constantly holds the attention of all around him, with each and every move he makes being more tantalizing and controversial than the last. Just one man holds the expectation of nearly all to not only become great, but to become a legend. Just one man can draw the pure amazement of so many with one swift move on the court, yet draw the ire of so many with just one word or action off of it. Only one man is simply known as the "The King." And that one man is of course none other than LeBron James.

Ah, LeBron. 

The man who can truly do it all. The one guy we know who can draw the love and support and cherishing of so many one second...

...and the pure hate, resentment, and just complete disappointment of those same people the next.

Only LeBron James, the man who entered and took over the NBA by storm at just 19 years old after a decorative high school career, could fill the hearts of a city desperate for a savior with hope and excitement just by gracing it's basketball court with his presence. The hometown hero, only a man like LeBron James could be deemed "the chosen one" and be expected to carry the weight of his city on his shoulders at such a young age. And just like Anakin did in a galaxy not too far away, only LeBron James could send shockwaves through an entire globe the way he did when he announced his decision to abandon his hometown courts for the ones of a distant team for a different city, all in search of that not so distant championship. 

And so he left. And with it he took his ever growing legacy, which was growing worse and worse by the second...

Did he give up on his people by abandoning them for a more talented squad? 

Is he not what we were expecting him to be? 

Will his failure to win a championship in Cleveland follow him forever? Is that going to be his legacy?

Were we really wrong about him? Could it be?

These questions and others began to slowly be whispered around him, and rightfully so. I mean, he sold out right? And what happened? He got to the Finals again, and failed again! Maybe he's just not destined for the greatness we thought he would be...

But then LeBron did what he does best. He proved us wrong, and he did so in dominating fashion. 

See, LeBron not only showed up in the Finals this time around, securing his first ever NBA title and Finals MVP award,  but he shut everyone else up in the process. "The King" led his team to a championship, earned his right on the upper echelon of basketball greatness, and along the way, he proved to everyone that he is all that people hype him up to be, and it's time for his haters to either graciously bow themselves out, or let themselves get embarrassed, cause there was no way they were coming out of this battle alive. LeBron had finally arrived, and at this point, we were all just witnesses.

But wait. This is LeBron we're talking about.

Sorry, but just 1 ring ain't gonna cut it. Nope, we expect a bit more, and by a bit more, we mean we expect you to multiply that ring total by at least 5.

And this is the burden of "The King."

All eyes are watching. And right now, as we get right into the swing of the playoffs, it's finally time.

This is a burden that no other man on this Earth, not Obama, not Tom Brady or Peyton Manning, not even Justin freakin-Bieber has to face. This is the burden to not only become a legend, but the legend. This is the burden to not only become the best at what he does, but to to be something beyond that. This is the burden to rewrite what is set in stone, and to replace what is irreplaceable. This is the task to supplant Michael Jordan from that Greatest of All Time, and to take that spot, all with each and every eye on the globe watching. 

This is what it means to be King. 

And LeBron, I hope you're ready. Cause I can guarantee you we are. 

 

 

 

 

Questions, comments, or concerns? Email me at akbarsuri14@yahoo.com