Once a semester, like clockwork, I write a boring, predictable column about my complete shock and awe at the superhuman abilities of one LeBron Raymone James. This semester will be no different.
Year in and year out, I make my case for LeBron's candidacy for NBA MVP honors. And year in and year out, my pleas -- he's better than Nash, better than Dirk, better than Kobe -- are ignored. The NBA respects the older-than-dirt fallacy that the MVP is "the best player from the best team," and a bunch of mediocre-to-good Cleveland finishes relatively obscured King James' greatness for five years.
Until now. The Cavaliers, who have won 60 games for the first time in the franchise's 39-year history, will probably finish with the NBA's best record. And finally, the rest of the NBA will realize what I've known for years: LeBron is really, really, really, really, really, really good.
To confirm my suspicion that others shared my belief, I looked no further than the Web site LeBronIsReallyReallyReally ReallyReallyReallyGood.com, a fansite that popped up in cyberspace last week with the unabashed intent to "make the case REALLY clear who should be the 2009 NBA MVP ... LeBron James!" (Capslocking and exclamation point theirs, not mine.)
The site includes oodles of stats, video highlights, quotes from both media people and fellow players, and lists of awards, records and team accomplishments meant to highlight LeBron's status as the league's best player. Sounds pretty convincing until you consider the source.
On Friday afternoon, TrueHoop blogger Henry Abbott posted the GoDaddy.com registration information behind LBIRRRRRRG.com. I and millions (okay, dozens) of fellow basketball nerds eagerly read on, only to discover that the billing address to the domain name was 1 Center Court in Cleveland and the owner was "Cleveland Cavaliers."
All right, this is just silly.
Last week, I took the site as a cute little novelty act -- a funny way of respecting a player who I personally believe to be the best in the world. Now, I see it for what it really is -- a promotional tool. I mean, for crying out loud, the thing's hosted by NBA.com.
Which brings me to my melodramatic rhetorical question of the week: Why do we care about all this?
The NBA is a league driven by its star power. It thrives because these superstars -- men who require no full names, instead simply going by LeBron, Kobe, CP3, D-Wade, what have you -- are not just men but icons. So does it really matter if they have the trophies to prove it?
I know how good LeBron James is. I've seen how he's transformed the Cavaliers franchise without much of a supporting cast. I've looked at every statistical metric known to man for evidence that he's having one of the best seasons had by anyone, ever. Most importantly, I've watched him on the court and experienced the awe that his physical prowess inspires.
I don't need any of that validated by an MVP award. Sorry, I just don't.
I suppose that in the NBA, the MVP is supposed to actually "mean something" -- there are no forgettable Rich Gannons or Justin Morneaus on the Association's list. Basketball's MVPs are legends, without exception -- every single past winner is either in the Hall of Fame or is a first-ballot lock once eligible (yes, even Iverson).
But in the end, value is for the fans to decide. And this fan knows it when he sees it. I don't need a panel of sportswriters to tell me what I already know: LeBron James is really, really, really, really, really, really, really good.
I added that seventh "really" myself.
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Evans Clinchy is a senior majoring in English. He can be reached at Evans.Clinchy@tufts.edu.
