It’s always a shame when two close friends – especially those who work together – let a minor disagreement come between them. On today’s episode of “With Leather… With Love,” we’re examining the wounded relationship between Cleveland Cavaliers majority owner Dan Gilbert and NBA superstar LeBron James. Last night, LeBron gave his resignation to the Cavs by going on television and announcing to the world that he can’t win a championship in Cleveland and is instead going to play with the Miami Heat, where he’ll be able to let Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh do the heavy lifting.
Gilbert apparently wasn’t very pleased with some of the major points of LeBron’s interview statements, such as: 1) His decision; 2) His delivery; 3) His pulse. Gilbert immediately issued an open letter to Cavaliers fans via the Cavs’ web site on NBA.com, and let’s just say the old boy didn’t hold back. Among some of the brighter points:
This was announced with a several day, narcissistic, self-promotional build-up culminating with a national TV special of his “decision” unlike anything ever “witnessed” in the history of sports and probably the history of entertainment.
You simply don’t deserve this kind of cowardly betrayal.
“I PERSONALLY GUARANTEE THAT THE CLEVELAND CAVALIERS WILL WIN AN NBA CHAMPIONSHIP BEFORE THE SELF-TITLED FORMER ‘KING’ WINS ONE”
If you thought we were motivated before tonight to bring the hardware to Cleveland, I can tell you that this shameful display of selfishness and betrayal by one of our very own has shifted our “motivation” to previously unknown and previously never experienced levels.
Some people think they should go to heaven but NOT have to die to get there.
The self-declared former “King” will be taking the “curse” with him down south. And until he does “right” by Cleveland and Ohio, James (and the town where he plays) will unfortunately own this dreaded spell and bad karma.
And there’s plenty of hyperbole, declarations, capitalized words, and misplaced quotation marks beyond that. The most remarkable part of this letter, that has surely been pointed out by everyone who has read it, is that Gilbert chose to write it in the very professional Comic Sans font. But in fairness, I’ve heard he uses Wingdings for internal memos.
While there has been no response from NBA commissioner David Stern’s office about Gilbert’s choice of action in expressing himself, we have obtained a copy of a letter that the Cavs owner has already written in response to Stern.
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“And we will win a championship before them, just like the “Browns” won before the “Ravens” did when they left.”
Did Northwestern revoke Wilbon’s journalism degree? You lie down with dogs like Gray and James, you get up with some stank on your nasty.
EP – I truly do feel bad for you and all Cavs fans. I was at the Boys & Girls club last night in Greenwich (not sure why) and was sickened by his Miami decision.
My grandparents moved to South Florida to be with their friends, nothing good came from it. Old people smell like ass.
This is classic! Great letter from Gilbert! I want to see exactly how Gilbert believes he will get this Cavs team in championship shape. I want Gilbert to let more cats out of the bag about LBJ. I loved his follow-up to this letter on how he said Lebron quit in 5 different playoff games and told the reporter to watch the tape!
Lebron should get Lecancer.
Nice font Gilbert. Looks like it was written on a 13 year old girls’ blog about Twilight.
This is the better letter I’ve seen since the one I sent to Natalie Holloway’s parents.
/seriously, fuck that guy…he is dead to me
Hater in the house!
@Enrico – I agree. Fuck that Van Der Sloot, dude.
Wait.. who did YOU mean?
Can we please get a photoshop image of the “MOMMY NO” Featuring LeBron, his Mom, Wade and Bosh? Can you even imagine if your Mom got fucked by that brontosaurus? Instant suicide.
Whatever. Cleveland fans shouldn’t be that upset. At least they still have the Browns.
I actually hope this leads to Cleveland recklessly spending and winning a championship. *feels dirty for actually cheering for Cleveland. . . sorta*
That was some mighty fine billionaire pwnage.
Jmac, that’s going to have to wait a few years. They don’t have a lot of cash.
I’m sure LeBron’s mother is looking forward to dressing sluttier year round.
Those Cleveland winters make it hard to show cameltoe.
Gilbert is pretty much spot on with his entire letter other than Cleveland winning a championship. Queen James has an ego for the ages, glad he took his cursed ass to Miami instead of Chicago though….
Not a fan of the NBS in any way, shape, or form but boy, that is one ugly mutt to have as the face of the NBA.
or even the NBA^
Gilbert’s a total loser. Cleveland had a .404 winning pct in the 7 years prior to LeBron arrival and a .606 pct in the 7 years after. Maybe he should do a better job building a winner and stop blaming a single player. LeBron was only a Cav becasue of 2 things, chance and a 17-56 season. He didn’t ask to be drafted to his home town. And if players aren’t allowed to leave a team after 7 seasons, having re-signed once already, then why even have free agency?
And what’s the difference between Wade and the Heat bringing in LeBron and Bosh compared to Chicago, Rose, and Noah bringing in LeBron and Boozer? Here, I’ll answer that for you, not a damn thing. So why is everyone losing it on these three. Everyone applauded Garnett and Allen for coming to Boston to for the Big 3 with Pierce, why not this time?
Hypocrites, all of you.
I wish he walked out, took the microphone and said, “Cleavland, YOU’RE F**CKING OUT! Going to Miami, BBQs with hot ass Puerto Ricans on the reg, Championship rings on the reg, Nike puppets on the reg…”
@ thesaurus – fan-fucking-tastic post!!! Can’t wait for season 2 of Eastbound.
So if no one in Cleveland saw this coming then they are blind… the pictures, the dinners, the setting of the announcement.. everything had “Lebron is leaving” written all over it. As for the city of Cleveland and the recent foreclosers, and economic drought in the city… I think it would help to make the city a better place if people went about having jobs rather than standing outside all day holding signs that say “home” on it.
@ Latress… when Garnett, and Allen came to Boston it was all different, the Celtics got them on trades first of all, and the players that would be know as the big 3 were at a point in their careers where they were ready to stop show boating and ready to play as a team and win. Plus they were all over 30 by that point.
So in regards to that while Miami might have formed a new big 3… still no match for the original big 3.. sure their legs might get tired before Miami’s but they have something that they dont, a team outside of the 3 and drive and determination.. thats how Boston beat the Cavaliers not by Lebron quitting.
LeBron James, King His Own World
LeBron James is a grown man who made a grownup decision to take his massive basketball-playing ability from Cleveland to Miami in a desire to get the one thing every true baller desires: the opportunity to call yourself a champion.
Forget all the nonsense about him “owing” his hometown and how his legacy could have been cemented had he stayed in the Midwest and continued to try to win a title in Cleveland. LeBron had the absolute right to pick up his things and go where he thought it was best to win, and he did it.
Enough with all of this ridiculous chatter that he’s a selfish, spoiled basketball prodigy. LeBron was an employee of the Cleveland Cavaliers. He had no ownership stake and no control. Everyone talks about what his presence meant to the Cleveland economy. Did he own any of those businesses? No. But he made them, and the Cavaliers, richer by his play.
There is undoubtedly a tradeoff, because being a star athlete is a two-way street.
You become richer by virtue of folks coming to see you play, and the league, team, marketers and surrounding businesses get to piggyback off of your success. LeBron gave them a solid seven seasons, and everyone enjoyed the ride. Say thank you for the LeBron gravy train, and now, like any smart business owner, you need to figure out your next revenue stream.
Now, let’s deal with the fans.
I read with fascination about how LeBron “owed” the fans. Really?
What exactly did he owe them?
We need to stop with this belief that fans in a city “own” a particular player. We get to sit back and enjoy the skills of these modern-day gladiators in our gleaming new Coliseums, while they bust their butts, play injured and have to take all of the criticism when things go bad.
As fans, we justify it all by saying, “Well, he’s getting millions to play, so he should shut up.”
We need to grow up and realize that once his playing days are over, we will say, “Thanks, LeBron, now move over so we can worship the next stud.” In fact, when a particular athlete has overstayed their welcome, the fans are the loudest in telling him to leave the court.
To me, there is a huge difference between a player like LeBron James and Albert Haynesworth of the Washington Redskins. Albert has pocketed nearly $40 million and has refused to show up at training sessions with Washington because he doesn’t like the defensive scheme. That is dumb.
LeBron showed up and did his part, and when his contract was up, he exercised his free will to do as he pleased and shop his talents. He did what every single American wants: to go to a new job where the desires you always wanted can be fulfilled. So how is that wrong?
No one — athlete, stockbroker, Wal-Mart greeter, grocery store clerk, secretary, journalist — wants to be treated like they are a piece of property. We all desire the freedom that comes with making our own choice as to where we want to work and achieve the goals in life that we all set.
I can identify with that. In 1993, I decided to leave the Austin American-Statesman, where I was the county government reporter. The then-city editor sat across from me and said, “I felt like it was a punch in the gut when told you were leaving.” He had an indignant, paternalistic tone that I found offensive.
See, I was making $24,000. When the Houston Chronicle pursued me for a job a few months earlier that would be around $27,000, I was told I was talking myself out of a job in Austin. So when the Fort Worth Star-Telegram offered me a gig at $32,000, I didn’t even bother seeing whether Austin wanted to counter. The new job allowed me to go to a bigger market and have the upward mobility I desired, so I took the job.
So I told the city editor, “Look, you didn’t take some kid off the street, teach him how to talk, write and dress. You paid me for a service, and I delivered. Now I’m choosing to take my skills elsewhere.” I then got up and left the meeting.
It was offensive to me that my bosses at the paper felt like I was being an ungrateful employee. I wanted to do more with my talents, and I refused to allow someone to make me feel bad about my decision. It’s my life, my career, my choice. So how is that bad?
Now I get folks who didn’t like LeBron having a one-hour special to announce his decision. But we are all used to the hype in sports. Do we really need a six-hour pregame show for the Super Bowl? Can’t we play the NBA All-Star Game without all of the side attractions? Would boxing be boxing without the wild and crazy news conferences? Hype and sports go hand-in-hand.
That’s why I found the letter written by Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert so pathetic. Here is a man who was enriched by the play of LeBron James; according to Forbes, the value of the franchise increased by $100 million with his on-court performance.
Yet instead of being a gracious owner and simply reaffirming his commitment to the fans to put a winning team on the court, Gilbert ripped LeBron to shreds, calling him “narcissistic” and his decision to leave a “cowardly betrayal” and “a shameful display of selfishness.”
Gilbert even went on to trash all athletes by saying, “It’s time for people to hold these athletes accountable for their actions. Is this the way you raise your children?”
In an interview, Gilbert later said LeBron quit on the team in the playoffs the past two years.
Really? So if he was all of that, Dan, why did you want to re-sign him? Who wants a quitter on his team? If LeBron had chosen to stay in Cleveland, rich boy Dan would have been all smiles, slapping his back, getting ready to count the money he could make off of the back of LeBron. So who would have been the real selfish, narcissistic individual, Dan?
Gilbert now says it’s time to speak out against LeBron, yet as long as James made him richer, he would have kept quiet. Sorry, Dan, you’ve pimped LeBron long enough.
LeBron showed Dan Gilbert that only LeBron owes LeBron an explanation. No owner, CEO or boss has the right to demand that someone stay as an employee. The employee has a right to live their life as they see fit.
As the CEO of LeBron James Inc., he did what’s in the best of interest of him. And as the most important shareholder, isn’t that what he’s supposed to do?
I’m sorry, folks, but the loyalty that used to exist from teams and companies is gone. Some still believe in it, but for many of us, we’re simply a dot on the spreadsheet. Business is cutthroat, and we have to accept that reality.
So, King James, go to Miami and do your thing. Grow your corporation to be as big as you want it to be. And never look back at the haters who are mad you chose not to act like a highly paid indentured servant or 21st-century slave, held in place by the invisible shackles dressed up as loyalty to a city, owing the fans and satisfying someone who is clearly an ungrateful owner.