Barkley going after James...again!!

[Snakehead]

The thing about Barkley is he's hypocritical (in regards to LeBron should have stayed in Cleveland).

Because Barkley wanted to get out of Philly to join a better team, so he forced his team to trade him to Phoenix.
Then Barkley wanted our of Phoenix to join Hakeem and Drexler in Houston, so he forced his team to trade him there.

So what the heck is Barkley talking about LeBron should have stayed in Cleveland?  If that's the case, Barkley should have stayed in Philly.

I do love that Barkley speaks his mind though.  I like the past superstars hating on LeBron 

It's funny because Barkley joined up with two greats late in his career desperately trying to win a title in Houston.  And if you have never won a ring, you know what you probably should not do?  Criticize players who are trying to put themselves in a good position to win a title.

I think Barkley is entertaining but he speaks out of his ass very often.

I think some people don't know the background on some of this stuff. By the time Barkley was traded to Houston he had battled injuries for the previous three seasons and had seriously considered retirement. He would last just two more injury filled seasons in Houston before being injured in the beginning of his third ending his career. Also, FWIW the suns received a very good package for Barkley including Sam Cassel and Robert Horry. Comparing a player making movements at the end of his career in moves that benefit both parties is a lot different then hijacking the league when you are 25 and going to play with your best friends.... Lebron can do what he want, but it is incorrect to say Barkley did the same thing. It would also be incorrect to compare KG or Ray Allen in case people are thinking about it.

LeBron was a FREE AGENT.  He had no obligation to provide Cleveland with anything, that's not how free agency works.  And LeBron didn't hijack the league, his Decision special was certainly too much but otherwise the teams were all the ones going after him so hard, setting up huge events for their fans, talking up their chances and defending mediocre seasons for a few years by saying "wait til the Summer of 2010"...

You can't blame LeBron for what teams, the media, or the NBA execs chose to do around his free agency.  He isn't blameless of course but it was those factors fueling the hype up until The Decision, and now after it.

I never said Barkley did the same thing, I only said between all the moves he made and his lack of a ring... shouldn't he not be criticizing a guy who made a smart decision (if your goal is winning a title) in Free Agency?  I know I would love to play on a great team with my best friends, I don't consider that a negative either, you seem to.  They should have better chemistry.

And although our Big Three didn't come together the same way (mutually in Free Agency) it is fine to compare the situations.  They were different certainly, but at the end of the day it is 3 greats coming together when they had less than optimal situations to try to make a great team. The big diference is merely that these guys are coming together at an earlier point in their careers... seems smart to me.

Listen to KG.  KG has said that he wished he came to Boston earlier, and that they would of won maybe 4 titles or so here.  Clearly he looks back at a situation where he did not have enough to win in Minny and wishes he had put himself in the better situation so that early in his career, when his powers were at their highest, he was competitive for titles.  That is smart, and instead of looking back and saying a similar thing and living with that regret forever, all the Miami guys just did it.


It'll be interesting to see what happens, because all these critics will look pretty dumb if this Heat team turns out to be a real dynasty, and that's certainly a very real possibility.

What he owed the Cavs and his fanbase was his best effort, rather than throwing the series right after handing the Celtics their worst home playoff loss in team history, scoring 38 on 63% FG, including a 21-pt 1stQ.

He avg'd 37 ppg vs the Celtics this season, but could "somehow" only manage 22 in game 4, including just 5 in the 4th on 33%fg, which started with the Cavs trailing by 2 pts (his only FGs were layups).  That was the game where all the Cavs starters were in double figures, and Shaq/Varejao had scored 25 and held Perk/Sheed to just 3 points...

Even so, all he had to do was lead the Cavs to 10 (home) wins and the Cavs get the title. But, as we all saw, he quit in game 5, with that epic 3-14, 15-pt travesty.

Unforgivable, IMHO!

Did you watch those games?  Because we played maybe the best defense I've ever seen played in the Playoffs.  It was smothering.  Better than 08 I believe.  We shut down all the one player focused teams: Wade in Miami, LBJ in Cle, Dwight in Orlando.  We also did a great job on Kobe almost the whole Finals, the usually clutch Kobe turned in an absolutely terrible game 7 (besides his rebounding aided by sagging off Rondo) but was bailed out because he has a great team around him.

If you swapped LBJ and Kobe I'm very certain the Lakers sitll win the title, probably more soundly.

The elimination game... was it a bad game?  Yes.  Just like Kobe in game 7 he had a bad offensive game but sitll gave a great effort (LBJ had something like 18 boards and still a lot of points because he got to the line a lot of times) and our defense gave a lot of people bad games, especially one man teams.  The reason LBJ's teammates had big games some of those times and LBJ did not have as big of games was because our defense was completely focused on stopping LBJ and making the others beat us.

This tactic can be great against teams with only one great player, worked for us all Playoffs, but as we saw with the Lakers if the rest of the team is good enough they can overcome it.  As soon as Artest stepped up for Kobe our defense fell apart because it was so focused on Kobe and not stopping Artest, we were leaving him open shots that he finally started hitting.

The thing about Barkley is he's hypocritical (in regards to LeBron should have stayed in Cleveland).

Because Barkley wanted to get out of Philly to join a better team, so he forced his team to trade him to Phoenix.
Then Barkley wanted our of Phoenix to join Hakeem and Drexler in Houston, so he forced his team to trade him there.

So what the heck is Barkley talking about LeBron should have stayed in Cleveland?  If that's the case, Barkley should have stayed in Philly.

I do love that Barkley speaks his mind though.  I like the past superstars hating on LeBron 

It's funny because Barkley joined up with two greats late in his career desperately trying to win a title in Houston.  And if you have never won a ring, you know what you probably should not do?  Criticize players who are trying to put themselves in a good position to win a title.

  I'm not a big Barkley guy, but it's different to try and win a title when you're in your 30s and your window as an impact player is starting to close, kind of like the Celts big three. It's another thing to give up on the idea of leading a team to a tile when you're 25.

It is different, I agree, but I think most players wish they could be in a better situation at a young age and if they don't, regret it later.  KG has said he wish he came to Boston many years before and he would have probably won 4+ rings here.

And LBJ will still be the best player on the Heat.  He is not the best player far and away, but you can't make a great team without great players (80's Celtics, 90's Bulls proved that with many great players on their roster).   If the Heat end up being a dynasty then he will be completely vindicated in his actions and all this will of been worth it.  He gave up personal glory in that situation, but this Heat team could be rememebred as an all time great squad.  That's a cool sacrifice IMO.

[LilRip]

The thing about Barkley is he's hypocritical (in regards to LeBron should have stayed in Cleveland).

Because Barkley wanted to get out of Philly to join a better team, so he forced his team to trade him to Phoenix.
Then Barkley wanted our of Phoenix to join Hakeem and Drexler in Houston, so he forced his team to trade him there.

So what the heck is Barkley talking about LeBron should have stayed in Cleveland?  If that's the case, Barkley should have stayed in Philly.

I do love that Barkley speaks his mind though.  I like the past superstars hating on LeBron  

Sir Charles I think was pretty fair in his request to leave philly based on the direction of their team. Look at the following roster and note they finished with 35 wins despite an incredible season from Barkley. Although they got a terrible package, trading him to rebuild completely was in the best interest of both parties. This is not the same as leaving a team that led the league in wins and took on 30 million in payroll the previous season to help you win (Shaq and Jamison). Seriously look at their roster below

http://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/PHI/1992.html

TP for this. the situation is totally different. just like how i didn't blame KG for wanting out of Minny. That t'wolves team was no good. If KG was coming off an MVP season and they had the best record in the league and were heavily favored to make the Finals and he walks out on them, then there's something wrong with that picture.

i view Lebron more of as a sellout. Sure he's a FA and he could've gone to any team but it's a move that a sellout would do. If he was less talented (like Bosh), it wouldn't seem that way. But for a guy with such immense talent, he should be making a legacy. He's selling out. For all the comparisons with the all-time greats like Bird, Magic, Jordan and fine, Kobe's in that list too... LBJ will probably never be a part of that list.

Probably the best possible 'status' LBJ can hope to achieve now is to be part of that lower-tier of all-time greats like Pippen.



- LilRip

[Mike-Dub]

The thing about Barkley is he's hypocritical (in regards to LeBron should have stayed in Cleveland).

Because Barkley wanted to get out of Philly to join a better team, so he forced his team to trade him to Phoenix.
Then Barkley wanted our of Phoenix to join Hakeem and Drexler in Houston, so he forced his team to trade him there.

So what the heck is Barkley talking about LeBron should have stayed in Cleveland?  If that's the case, Barkley should have stayed in Philly.

I do love that Barkley speaks his mind though.  I like the past superstars hating on LeBron 

It's funny because Barkley joined up with two greats late in his career desperately trying to win a title in Houston.  And if you have never won a ring, you know what you probably should not do?  Criticize players who are trying to put themselves in a good position to win a title.

I think Barkley is entertaining but he speaks out of his ass very often.

I think some people don't know the background on some of this stuff. By the time Barkley was traded to Houston he had battled injuries for the previous three seasons and had seriously considered retirement. He would last just two more injury filled seasons in Houston before being injured in the beginning of his third ending his career. Also, FWIW the suns received a very good package for Barkley including Sam Cassel and Robert Horry. Comparing a player making movements at the end of his career in moves that benefit both parties is a lot different then hijacking the league when you are 25 and going to play with your best friends.... Lebron can do what he want, but it is incorrect to say Barkley did the same thing. It would also be incorrect to compare KG or Ray Allen in case people are thinking about it.

LeBron was a FREE AGENT.  He had no obligation to provide Cleveland with anything, that's not how free agency works.  And LeBron didn't hijack the league, his Decision special was certainly too much but otherwise the teams were all the ones going after him so hard, setting up huge events for their fans, talking up their chances and defending mediocre seasons for a few years by saying "wait til the Summer of 2010"...

You can't blame LeBron for what teams, the media, or the NBA execs chose to do around his free agency.  He isn't blameless of course but it was those factors fueling the hype up until The Decision, and now after it.

I never said Barkley did the same thing, I only said between all the moves he made and his lack of a ring... shouldn't he not be criticizing a guy who made a smart decision (if your goal is winning a title) in Free Agency?  I know I would love to play on a great team with my best friends, I don't consider that a negative either, you seem to.  They should have better chemistry.

And although our Big Three didn't come together the same way (mutually in Free Agency) it is fine to compare the situations.  They were different certainly, but at the end of the day it is 3 greats coming together when they had less than optimal situations to try to make a great team. The big diference is merely that these guys are coming together at an earlier point in their careers... seems smart to me.

Listen to KG.  KG has said that he wished he came to Boston earlier, and that they would of won maybe 4 titles or so here.  Clearly he looks back at a situation where he did not have enough to win in Minny and wishes he had put himself in the better situation so that early in his career, when his powers were at their highest, he was competitive for titles.  That is smart, and instead of looking back and saying a similar thing and living with that regret forever, all the Miami guys just did it.

Of course there was going to be hype.  He "was" the best player in the league and was about to be a free-agent.  He didn't have to be such a jerk about leaving!!  He didn't have to go on Larry King!!  He didn't have to have "The DeBACLE"!!  He didn't have to have that ridiculous circus that him Bosh and Wade did two days after he signed after never even stepping on the court as teammates yet!! He didn't have to do any of that!!  He chose to! 

Charles gave his all on every team he played on and never left any of the franchise's he played for as wreck like Le"Instert word here did".  Charles never would have left any of the franchise's he was on to dry like LeCon did.  LeCon should be thankful for Cleveland.  They gave him his start to his NBA career. 

KG was really distraught when he was leaving Minnesota and was really upset about it.  He actually showed LOYALTY, which LeCon has no idea what that word even means, to Minnesota. 

If LeBron was going to leave and had any cojones he would have gone to Chicago where he would have tried to surpass Jordan, win more rings, and have Jordan be in his shadow.

If LeCon really was a man though...  HE WOULD HAVE STAYED IN CLEVELAND AND DONE IT AND WON IT THERE!!!

The event after the signing was a media event... other teams do them too, this was a bigger and more extravagant one certainly but when you're bringing in the leagues reigning MVP and one of its best PFs you should probably celebrate that with your fans to get them excited, especially if you have had dissapointing years the last few years.  I think every single team would have done what the Heat did if they landed James.

Of course it was a media event.  He "WAS" the best basketball player in the NBA in many peoples opinions.  No other team would have celebrated like  (except maybe the Knicks, who may even not have, and the Clippers, who would have had the right with how bad their franchise has been lol)! 

Do you really think that the Celtics would have had a circus like that had we gotten LeBron???  OF COURSE NOT!  Our team was the second worst recordwise the year before we landed KG and Ray and did you see us having a circus and WWE event like the three queens and the Heat.  OF COURSE NOT!  Because our organization has wwwwaaayyyy wwwaaaayyy to much class and so do Ray and KG.

Cleveland started LeBron's NBA career because they happend to be the worst team in the league and ended up witht he 1st pick... like do you think another team wouldn't have been thrilled to have LeBron James? 

Obviously any team would have been thrilled to land LeBron.  No news here.

And I think LeBron was not happy about leaving Cleveland, you have no reasonable way to say he did not.  He hurt people in Cle with his special certainly but I think he just didn't think it through and see the ramifications.  LeBron gave his everything to Cleveland for 7 years, so that's weird to say he would suddenly not care at all.  He handled it badly but I don't see how, judging from his past, you could say he wouldn't care at all.  The special made it look bad but I don't believe he would not care.

LeBron didn't give a crap about Cleveland.  All he cares about is himself... himself more... Akron kind of... and then winning.  Like it or not Cleveland is LeBron's home team!  Just like the Celtics are my home team and I live in Rhode Island!  The closest team to where you were born or grown up is your hometeam! 

R u a Celtics fan and did you watch this past years playoffs??  Because if so you would have seen the Celtics man handle LeBron and made him quit.  Which he did!  With a minute and a half left his team was down 9 points!!  9 points!!  You think Michael or Reggie or anyone else would have gave up and lead his team in doing it!!

And I guess LeBron doesn't give a crap about Jordan's legacy, why should he?  If i was him I'd stop listening to people who endlessly compare him to Jordan even though they are not the same player.  He should move on and try to make a dynasty of his own, not in Chicago but somehwere else (i.e. Miami) so that people can say "He was the best Heat player ever" or that the "Heat team was the best ever" or "LBJ is the best of all time" etc without any mention of Michael Jordan.  To attach yourself to Jordan like that would of been lame, like some kind of crutch.  He should of done just what he did.

Endless comparisons between players in basketball history is the most overrated aspect anyone talks about.  The games were so different during these times that it's pointless.

Why should LeBron care about Jordan's career???  Because Jordan is arguably the best basketball player ever to live!!  LeBron should strive to be better than him and try to be the best basketball player in the world because he had the talent too but he didn't have the competiveness as we all know now. 

LeBron should try to move on and make a dynasty of his own and not in Chicago???  You could not be more wrong here.  If he should make a dynasty on his own and become the best player ever he should have stayed in Cleveland and won multiple championships there or even gone to Chicago in a respectful manner completely opposite of what he's done and surpassed Jordan by winning 7 rings and have Jordan be in his shadow!!  Instead he decided to go become D-Wades you know what and join his friends and take the easy way out!!  LeCon is a coward and will always be a loser!!



I tried quoting everything you said and then stating after it, but that didn't work, but you can see where I edited and gave my opinion.  Wish what I originally typed didn't get all done after my log in timed out, but that was basically what I said.

[LilRip]

The thing about Barkley is he's hypocritical (in regards to LeBron should have stayed in Cleveland).

Because Barkley wanted to get out of Philly to join a better team, so he forced his team to trade him to Phoenix.
Then Barkley wanted our of Phoenix to join Hakeem and Drexler in Houston, so he forced his team to trade him there.

So what the heck is Barkley talking about LeBron should have stayed in Cleveland?  If that's the case, Barkley should have stayed in Philly.

I do love that Barkley speaks his mind though.  I like the past superstars hating on LeBron 

It's funny because Barkley joined up with two greats late in his career desperately trying to win a title in Houston.  And if you have never won a ring, you know what you probably should not do?  Criticize players who are trying to put themselves in a good position to win a title.

I think Barkley is entertaining but he speaks out of his ass very often.

I think some people don't know the background on some of this stuff. By the time Barkley was traded to Houston he had battled injuries for the previous three seasons and had seriously considered retirement. He would last just two more injury filled seasons in Houston before being injured in the beginning of his third ending his career. Also, FWIW the suns received a very good package for Barkley including Sam Cassel and Robert Horry. Comparing a player making movements at the end of his career in moves that benefit both parties is a lot different then hijacking the league when you are 25 and going to play with your best friends.... Lebron can do what he want, but it is incorrect to say Barkley did the same thing. It would also be incorrect to compare KG or Ray Allen in case people are thinking about it.

LeBron was a FREE AGENT.  He had no obligation to provide Cleveland with anything, that's not how free agency works.  And LeBron didn't hijack the league, his Decision special was certainly too much but otherwise the teams were all the ones going after him so hard, setting up huge events for their fans, talking up their chances and defending mediocre seasons for a few years by saying "wait til the Summer of 2010"...

You can't blame LeBron for what teams, the media, or the NBA execs chose to do around his free agency.  He isn't blameless of course but it was those factors fueling the hype up until The Decision, and now after it.

I never said Barkley did the same thing, I only said between all the moves he made and his lack of a ring... shouldn't he not be criticizing a guy who made a smart decision (if your goal is winning a title) in Free Agency?  I know I would love to play on a great team with my best friends, I don't consider that a negative either, you seem to.  They should have better chemistry.

And although our Big Three didn't come together the same way (mutually in Free Agency) it is fine to compare the situations.  They were different certainly, but at the end of the day it is 3 greats coming together when they had less than optimal situations to try to make a great team. The big diference is merely that these guys are coming together at an earlier point in their careers... seems smart to me.

Listen to KG.  KG has said that he wished he came to Boston earlier, and that they would of won maybe 4 titles or so here.  Clearly he looks back at a situation where he did not have enough to win in Minny and wishes he had put himself in the better situation so that early in his career, when his powers were at their highest, he was competitive for titles.  That is smart, and instead of looking back and saying a similar thing and living with that regret forever, all the Miami guys just did it.


It'll be interesting to see what happens, because all these critics will look pretty dumb if this Heat team turns out to be a real dynasty, and that's certainly a very real possibility.

What he owed the Cavs and his fanbase was his best effort, rather than throwing the series right after handing the Celtics their worst home playoff loss in team history, scoring 38 on 63% FG, including a 21-pt 1stQ.

He avg'd 37 ppg vs the Celtics this season, but could "somehow" only manage 22 in game 4, including just 5 in the 4th on 33%fg, which started with the Cavs trailing by 2 pts (his only FGs were layups).  That was the game where all the Cavs starters were in double figures, and Shaq/Varejao had scored 25 and held Perk/Sheed to just 3 points...

Even so, all he had to do was lead the Cavs to 10 (home) wins and the Cavs get the title. But, as we all saw, he quit in game 5, with that epic 3-14, 15-pt travesty.

Unforgivable, IMHO!

Did you watch those games?  Because we played maybe the best defense I've ever seen played in the Playoffs.  It was smothering.  Better than 08 I believe.  We shut down all the one player focused teams: Wade in Miami, LBJ in Cle, Dwight in Orlando.  We also did a great job on Kobe almost the whole Finals, the usually clutch Kobe turned in an absolutely terrible game 7 (besides his rebounding aided by sagging off Rondo) but was bailed out because he has a great team around him.

If you swapped LBJ and Kobe I'm very certain the Lakers sitll win the title, probably more soundly.

The elimination game... was it a bad game?  Yes.  Just like Kobe in game 7 he had a bad offensive game but sitll gave a great effort (LBJ had something like 18 boards and still a lot of points because he got to the line a lot of times) and our defense gave a lot of people bad games, especially one man teams.  The reason LBJ's teammates had big games some of those times and LBJ did not have as big of games was because our defense was completely focused on stopping LBJ and making the others beat us.

This tactic can be great against teams with only one great player, worked for us all Playoffs, but as we saw with the Lakers if the rest of the team is good enough they can overcome it.  As soon as Artest stepped up for Kobe our defense fell apart because it was so focused on Kobe and not stopping Artest, we were leaving him open shots that he finally started hitting.

i watched the games. And i felt that the Cavs would've beat the Lakers had they managed to make it to the Finals. but LBJ looked like he partially quit on his team somewhere in the middle of our series with them. i mean, we were playing good D and all but i also felt that LBJ quit on his team.



- LilRip

[LilRip]

The thing about Barkley is he's hypocritical (in regards to LeBron should have stayed in Cleveland).

Because Barkley wanted to get out of Philly to join a better team, so he forced his team to trade him to Phoenix.
Then Barkley wanted our of Phoenix to join Hakeem and Drexler in Houston, so he forced his team to trade him there.

So what the heck is Barkley talking about LeBron should have stayed in Cleveland?  If that's the case, Barkley should have stayed in Philly.

I do love that Barkley speaks his mind though.  I like the past superstars hating on LeBron  

It's funny because Barkley joined up with two greats late in his career desperately trying to win a title in Houston.  And if you have never won a ring, you know what you probably should not do?  Criticize players who are trying to put themselves in a good position to win a title.

I think Barkley is entertaining but he speaks out of his ass very often.

I think some people don't know the background on some of this stuff. By the time Barkley was traded to Houston he had battled injuries for the previous three seasons and had seriously considered retirement. He would last just two more injury filled seasons in Houston before being injured in the beginning of his third ending his career. Also, FWIW the suns received a very good package for Barkley including Sam Cassel and Robert Horry. Comparing a player making movements at the end of his career in moves that benefit both parties is a lot different then hijacking the league when you are 25 and going to play with your best friends.... Lebron can do what he want, but it is incorrect to say Barkley did the same thing. It would also be incorrect to compare KG or Ray Allen in case people are thinking about it.

LeBron was a FREE AGENT.  He had no obligation to provide Cleveland with anything, that's not how free agency works.  And LeBron didn't hijack the league, his Decision special was certainly too much but otherwise the teams were all the ones going after him so hard, setting up huge events for their fans, talking up their chances and defending mediocre seasons for a few years by saying "wait til the Summer of 2010"...

You can't blame LeBron for what teams, the media, or the NBA execs chose to do around his free agency.  He isn't blameless of course but it was those factors fueling the hype up until The Decision, and now after it.

I never said Barkley did the same thing, I only said between all the moves he made and his lack of a ring... shouldn't he not be criticizing a guy who made a smart decision (if your goal is winning a title) in Free Agency?  I know I would love to play on a great team with my best friends, I don't consider that a negative either, you seem to.  They should have better chemistry.

And although our Big Three didn't come together the same way (mutually in Free Agency) it is fine to compare the situations.  They were different certainly, but at the end of the day it is 3 greats coming together when they had less than optimal situations to try to make a great team. The big diference is merely that these guys are coming together at an earlier point in their careers... seems smart to me.

Listen to KG.  KG has said that he wished he came to Boston earlier, and that they would of won maybe 4 titles or so here.  Clearly he looks back at a situation where he did not have enough to win in Minny and wishes he had put himself in the better situation so that early in his career, when his powers were at their highest, he was competitive for titles.  That is smart, and instead of looking back and saying a similar thing and living with that regret forever, all the Miami guys just did it.

Of course there was going to be hype.  He "was" the best player in the league and was about to be a free-agent.  He didn't have to be such a jerk about leaving!!  He didn't have to go on Larry King!!  He didn't have to have "The DeBACLE"!!  He didn't have to have that ridiculous circus that him Bosh and Wade did two days after he signed after never even stepping on the court as teammates yet!! He didn't have to do any of that!!  He chose to!  

Charles gave his all on every team he played on and never left any of the franchise's he played for as wreck like Le"Instert word here did".  Charles never would have left any of the franchise's he was on to dry like LeCon did.  LeCon should be thankful for Cleveland.  They gave him his start to his NBA career.  

KG was really distraught when he was leaving Minnesota and was really upset about it.  He actually showed LOYALTY, which LeCon has no idea what that word even means, to Minnesota.  

If LeBron was going to leave and had any cojones he would have gone to Chicago where he would have tried to surpass Jordan, win more rings, and have Jordan be in his shadow.

If LeCon really was a man though...  HE WOULD HAVE STAYED IN CLEVELAND AND DONE IT AND WON IT THERE!!!

The event after the signing was a media event... other teams do them too, this was a bigger and more extravagant one certainly but when you're bringing in the leagues reigning MVP and one of its best PFs you should probably celebrate that with your fans to get them excited, especially if you have had dissapointing years the last few years.  I think every single team would have done what the Heat did if they landed James.

Cleveland started LeBron's NBA career because they happend to be the worst team in the league and ended up witht he 1st pick... like do you think another team wouldn't have been thrilled to have LeBron James?  

And I think LeBron was not happy about leaving Cleveland, you have no reasonable way to say he did not.  He hurt people in Cle with his special certainly but I think he just didn't think it through and see the ramifications.  LeBron gave his everything to Cleveland for 7 years, so that's weird to say he would suddenly not care at all.  He handled it badly but I don't see how, judging from his past, you could say he wouldn't care at all.  The special made it look bad but I don't believe he would not care.

And I guess LeBron doesn't give a crap about Jordan's legacy, why should he?  If i was him I'd stop listening to people who endlessly compare him to Jordan even though they are not the same player.  He should move on and try to make a dynasty of his own, not in Chicago but somehwere else (i.e. Miami) so that people can say "He was the best Heat player ever" or that the "Heat team was the best ever" or "LBJ is the best of all time" etc without any mention of Michael Jordan.  To attach yourself to Jordan like that would of been lame, like some kind of crutch.  He should of done just what he did.

Endless comparisons between players in basketball history is the most overrated aspect anyone talks about.  The games were so different during these times that it's pointless.

The thing about Barkley is he's hypocritical (in regards to LeBron should have stayed in Cleveland).

Because Barkley wanted to get out of Philly to join a better team, so he forced his team to trade him to Phoenix.
Then Barkley wanted our of Phoenix to join Hakeem and Drexler in Houston, so he forced his team to trade him there.

So what the heck is Barkley talking about LeBron should have stayed in Cleveland?  If that's the case, Barkley should have stayed in Philly.

I do love that Barkley speaks his mind though.  I like the past superstars hating on LeBron  

It's funny because Barkley joined up with two greats late in his career desperately trying to win a title in Houston.  And if you have never won a ring, you know what you probably should not do?  Criticize players who are trying to put themselves in a good position to win a title.

I think Barkley is entertaining but he speaks out of his ass very often.

I think some people don't know the background on some of this stuff. By the time Barkley was traded to Houston he had battled injuries for the previous three seasons and had seriously considered retirement. He would last just two more injury filled seasons in Houston before being injured in the beginning of his third ending his career. Also, FWIW the suns received a very good package for Barkley including Sam Cassel and Robert Horry. Comparing a player making movements at the end of his career in moves that benefit both parties is a lot different then hijacking the league when you are 25 and going to play with your best friends.... Lebron can do what he want, but it is incorrect to say Barkley did the same thing. It would also be incorrect to compare KG or Ray Allen in case people are thinking about it.

LeBron was a FREE AGENT.  He had no obligation to provide Cleveland with anything, that's not how free agency works.  And LeBron didn't hijack the league, his Decision special was certainly too much but otherwise the teams were all the ones going after him so hard, setting up huge events for their fans, talking up their chances and defending mediocre seasons for a few years by saying "wait til the Summer of 2010"...

You can't blame LeBron for what teams, the media, or the NBA execs chose to do around his free agency.  He isn't blameless of course but it was those factors fueling the hype up until The Decision, and now after it.

I never said Barkley did the same thing, I only said between all the moves he made and his lack of a ring... shouldn't he not be criticizing a guy who made a smart decision (if your goal is winning a title) in Free Agency?  I know I would love to play on a great team with my best friends, I don't consider that a negative either, you seem to.  They should have better chemistry.

And although our Big Three didn't come together the same way (mutually in Free Agency) it is fine to compare the situations.  They were different certainly, but at the end of the day it is 3 greats coming together when they had less than optimal situations to try to make a great team. The big diference is merely that these guys are coming together at an earlier point in their careers... seems smart to me.

Listen to KG.  KG has said that he wished he came to Boston earlier, and that they would of won maybe 4 titles or so here.  Clearly he looks back at a situation where he did not have enough to win in Minny and wishes he had put himself in the better situation so that early in his career, when his powers were at their highest, he was competitive for titles.  That is smart, and instead of looking back and saying a similar thing and living with that regret forever, all the Miami guys just did it.


It'll be interesting to see what happens, because all these critics will look pretty dumb if this Heat team turns out to be a real dynasty, and that's certainly a very real possibility.

I am well aware it is not outside the realm of possibilities that Lebron would hire people to defend and protect his image on blogs and message boards... whats he paying you

Compelling response lol.

EERRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!  I just made a post contradicting all of your points and my log in got timed out.  W.E. it's not worth the time to type it again.  Everything you said not trying to be mean, but is wrong plain and simple. 

that has also happened to me too and it SUUUUUCKS! but TP for your original effort. I'm sure i would've agreed with you



- LilRip

[bdm860]

Some of you disappoint me in your opinions.

I think Barkley leaving Philly is very similar to LeBron leaving Cleveland.

Barkley played 8 years for Philly
James played 7 years for Cleveland

So I think Barkley forcing his way out of Philly IN HIS PRIME is pretty much the same as LeBron leaving Cleveland at 25.  Also Philly was a bad team WITH Barkley, is it LeBron's fault that Cleveland is only a good team WITH LeBron?  Philly won 26 games the year after trading Barkley, it's very possible Cleveland does similar now (although I personally would probably guess they'd end up in the 30-35 range, but 26 isn't out of the question).

I do agree the Houston situation is a little different, Barkley was near the end of his career.  But make no mistake, Barkley left a PLAYOFF team to join another PLAYOFF team, just like LeBron did.  It's not like Phoenix wasn't good, Barkley just wanted to leave for a better situation.

And let's not bash LeBron for not being stupid (contractually speaking that is).  Every other player signs a max contract (in terms of years).  Remember when Kobe demanded a trade from the Lakers, you don't think he would have walked if he were a free agent?  Same thing with Garnett and Barkley, and now even Chris Paul, they all would have walked if they had the chance.  LeBron made a smart move and signed for less years.  He  didn't commit anything to the city of Cleveland, so that makes him a villian, as oppossed to players who commit 6-7 years to a team, then demand out after 3?  I'm surprised everyone seems to think forcing a trade is a lot more noble then just leaving as a free agent.

So in conclusion:  Barkley leaving Philly is very similar (at least in my opinion) to LeBron leaving Cleveland.
Barkley leaving Houston is not as similar, but still puts Barkley in a position where he comes off as a hypocrite.

[ACF]

Some of you disappoint me in your opinions.

Sorry 

The difference is Barkley wasn't the poster boy for ESPN and he didn't go on national TV in a hyped-up "Decision" one-hour show to screw thousands of fans over. That said, I wish LeBron all the best because I know that his proclamation of seven rings (are you kidding me?) is nothing but a dream. Another thing is that Barkley was a great player but nowhere as great as LBJ is and I think even Barkley recognizes that and that's why he's disappointed. He wanted LBJ to be a Bird, an MJ or a Magic. You know, a franchise player in the most true sense of the word.

[bdm860]

The thing about Barkley is he's hypocritical (in regards to LeBron should have stayed in Cleveland).

Because Barkley wanted to get out of Philly to join a better team, so he forced his team to trade him to Phoenix.
Then Barkley wanted our of Phoenix to join Hakeem and Drexler in Houston, so he forced his team to trade him there.

So what the heck is Barkley talking about LeBron should have stayed in Cleveland?  If that's the case, Barkley should have stayed in Philly.

I do love that Barkley speaks his mind though.  I like the past superstars hating on LeBron  

Sir Charles I think was pretty fair in his request to leave philly based on the direction of their team. Look at the following roster and note they finished with 35 wins despite an incredible season from Barkley. Although they got a terrible package, trading him to rebuild completely was in the best interest of both parties. This is not the same as leaving a team that led the league in wins and took on 30 million in payroll the previous season to help you win (Shaq and Jamison). Seriously look at their roster below

http://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/PHI/1992.html

TP for this. the situation is totally different. just like how i didn't blame KG for wanting out of Minny. That t'wolves team was no good. If KG was coming off an MVP season and they had the best record in the league and were heavily favored to make the Finals and he walks out on them, then there's something wrong with that picture.

i view Lebron more of as a sellout. Sure he's a FA and he could've gone to any team but it's a move that a sellout would do. If he was less talented (like Bosh), it wouldn't seem that way. But for a guy with such immense talent, he should be making a legacy. He's selling out. For all the comparisons with the all-time greats like Bird, Magic, Jordan and fine, Kobe's in that list too... LBJ will probably never be a part of that list.

Probably the best possible 'status' LBJ can hope to achieve now is to be part of that lower-tier of all-time greats like Pippen.



- LilRip

He sold out no differently then Wilt or Kareem (who also switched teams in their primes).  Unquestionably two of the upper echelon of All-Time greats.  You can't have a list of greatest ever without those 2 names.  So let's not act like switching teams automatically negates you to second-tier status.

If they were free agents they would have walked too.

[bdm860]

Some of you disappoint me in your opinions.

Sorry  

The difference is Barkley wasn't the poster boy for ESPN and he didn't go on national TV in a hyped-up "Decision" one-hour show to screw thousands of fans over. That said, I wish LeBron all the best because I know that his proclamation of seven rings (are you kidding me?) is nothing but a dream. Another thing is that Barkley was a great player but nowhere as great as LBJ is and I think even Barkley recognizes that and that's why he's disappointed. He wanted LBJ to be a Bird, an MJ or a Magic. You know, a franchise player in the most true sense of the word.

I'm gonna have to take you off my buddy list now  

No doubt many stupid things LeBron has done and I 100% agree Barkley being critical of (The Decision definitely being one of them).  I just don't think Barkley should critize LeBron for leaving Cleveland when Barkley himself has left teams.

[ACF]

Some of you disappoint me in your opinions.

Sorry 

The difference is Barkley wasn't the poster boy for ESPN and he didn't go on national TV in a hyped-up "Decision" one-hour show to screw thousands of fans over. That said, I wish LeBron all the best because I know that his proclamation of seven rings (are you kidding me?) is nothing but a dream. Another thing is that Barkley was a great player but nowhere as great as LBJ is and I think even Barkley recognizes that and that's why he's disappointed. He wanted LBJ to be a Bird, an MJ or a Magic. You know, a franchise player in the most true sense of the word.

I'm gonna have to take you off my buddy list now 

LOL

[bopna]

The Other main issue being pointed out by CB in the past is a superstar in his own right should never join another superstar...Its just not right for the league and for parity as well.

People criticize Barkley for being hypocritical, but as what has been stated, He joined Houston when both Hakeem and Pippen were too old and none of em superstars anymore.

It is certainly not a fair comparison to all the other mergers out there..MJ was the superstar, and Pippen was his sidekick, Bird was the superstar, the other two are future HOF but certainly not superstars, Isaiah was the superstar in Detroit, Magic was the key in LA, others were just sparepart sidekick HOFmers(Kareem was in his 30's already), get the picture here...When Shaq won in LA, He was the superstar and Kobe was the Sidekick, When its Kobe's turn, Gasol is the sideburner.

In this league, Elite teams with superstars win, as like when we won, KG was the superstar, PP was never considered a superstar and so was Allen, but they are lock HOF like Mchale and Parish were. The point is Lebron was the man in Cleveland, he was supposed to be the messiah, anointed the King. why because the league regarded him as such..a Superstar who will eventually win a ring, he was also only 25, what he did though was a jerky , childish move culminated by that stupid one hour special.  Ive always though James was going to win a title anyways, but what he did was really cowardice, he have decided to team up with WADE of all people, who is another teams superstar, Now when 2 of the leagues elite top 5 superstars join together, that is never good.  I have no problem if these two hook up in their 30's, But the fact that they did it in their prime speaks of how James is so desperate in his legacy to chase a Ring.  Now though I have more respect to Barkley who has never won a ring but atleast he did try it on his own while in Philly and Phoenix, than if ever Lebron wins 5 but he had to play sidekick to Wade.

[Celtics Fan]

Some of you disappoint me in your opinions.

Sorry  

The difference is Barkley wasn't the poster boy for ESPN and he didn't go on national TV in a hyped-up "Decision" one-hour show to screw thousands of fans over. That said, I wish LeBron all the best because I know that his proclamation of seven rings (are you kidding me?) is nothing but a dream. Another thing is that Barkley was a great player but nowhere as great as LBJ is and I think even Barkley recognizes that and that's why he's disappointed. He wanted LBJ to be a Bird, an MJ or a Magic. You know, a franchise player in the most true sense of the word.

The mound bound of rebound wasn't a slouch his self now. Barkley at one time was the dominant force too, so lets not forget that. If YOU ask me now if LBJ is better than Charles? I look at their legacys and neither of them have a ring, so they are equal because LBJ hasn't did nothing Charles havent done.

[ACF]

Some of you disappoint me in your opinions.

Sorry  

The difference is Barkley wasn't the poster boy for ESPN and he didn't go on national TV in a hyped-up "Decision" one-hour show to screw thousands of fans over. That said, I wish LeBron all the best because I know that his proclamation of seven rings (are you kidding me?) is nothing but a dream. Another thing is that Barkley was a great player but nowhere as great as LBJ is and I think even Barkley recognizes that and that's why he's disappointed. He wanted LBJ to be a Bird, an MJ or a Magic. You know, a franchise player in the most true sense of the word.

The mound bound of rebound wasn't a slouch his self now. Barkley at one time was the dominant force too, so lets not forget that. If YOU ask me now if LBJ is better than Charles? I look at their legacys and neither of them have a ring, so they are equal because LBJ hasn't did nothing Charles havent done.

Although I haven't checked I am pretty sure Barkley never averaged 8.6 assists  per game at age 25 or any age, for that matter  

[Mike-Dub]

Some of you disappoint me in your opinions.

Sorry  

The difference is Barkley wasn't the poster boy for ESPN and he didn't go on national TV in a hyped-up "Decision" one-hour show to screw thousands of fans over. That said, I wish LeBron all the best because I know that his proclamation of seven rings (are you kidding me?) is nothing but a dream. Another thing is that Barkley was a great player but nowhere as great as LBJ is and I think even Barkley recognizes that and that's why he's disappointed. He wanted LBJ to be a Bird, an MJ or a Magic. You know, a franchise player in the most true sense of the word.

The mound bound of rebound wasn't a slouch his self now. Barkley at one time was the dominant force too, so lets not forget that. If YOU ask me now if LBJ is better than Charles? I look at their legacys and neither of them have a ring, so they are equal because LBJ hasn't did nothing Charles havent done.

Charles knows that LeBron had much much more potential to be great than he did.  LeBron wussied out and Charles is upset about it like most of us.

[bdm860]

I don't remember Shaq getting any grief for ditching Orlando for LA at age 24.  Orlando a team that just made the Finals, with Shaq who was every bit as much of a megastar as LeBron, maybe even more so.

(I know Shaq didn't do the whole "Decision" thing, agree LeBron deserves a whole bunch of criticism for that, I'm specifically talking about the switching teams parts).