yeah right. of course his majesty can do no wrong and people are already saying they feel sorry for him because he didn't have enough help. boo-fucking hoo!

here's what james said about walking off the court and not speaking to anyone after the game:

"It's hard for me to congratulate somebody after you just lose to them," he said. "I'm a winner. It's not being a poor sport or anything like that. If somebody beats you up, you're not going to congratulate them. That doesn't make sense to me. I'm a competitor. That's what I do. It doesn't make sense for me to go over and shake somebody's hand."


what a cry baby. the fact is, for as great as he played for much of this series, he didn't show up in the biggest game either. sure his numbers looked OK. but he continually shied away from being assertive when his team needed someone to step it up. yeah orlando was focussing on him but he's shown before he can't be stopped. he could've gone to the line if he just took it hard at them enough.

but instead, his majesty is so used to getting every touch foul by the opponent, that he couldn't tough it up and at least keep his team in the game for a while. cavs were completely torn apart in this game and lebron deserves a good bit of the blame too IMO.

don't sound too bitter do i? lol

bush league, no doubt

the kid is ridiculously talented athletically. i guess i'm just sick of everyone kissing his ass and already saying he's going to be the G.O.A.T.

he doesn't have NEAR the focus or killer instinct jordan had. and yet he's already surpassed jordan in the minds of so many idiots in the media and fanbase.

and i guess i'm just sick of his ad campaigns. anyone who tattoos 'the chosen one' across his back needs to be humbled. i hope he never wins a nba championship. not until he comes back down to earth and stops with this whole christlike attitude and 'we are all witnesses' crap. yeah bron, we just witnessed you get your ass kicked, from start to finish, in the only game that mattered all year for your team.

nice job jackass. stop believing the hype and come back down to earth for a second your majesty, 'king james'! fuckin kids nowadays.....

He is a douche. Agree with this.

Come on man, he's only 24.

exactly. he's 24 he's a man and should know better. i was always humble in defeat and victory, even at 16. the guy speaks about himself like he's some sort of god. what sort of person calls themself 'the chosen one' even if he doesn't literally mean 'messiah'....he's obviously way into himself.

i don't care how good he is or how young he is. he's in need of knock back down to earth. i would say that an ACL injury would help take care of his idea that he walks on water and is invincible.....but i wouldn't go so far as to wish harm on him or anyone.

but i'm just saying....he needs a few servings of humble pie.

ACL, that's just mean even though you said so yourself. I'm pretty sure he just ate a big piece of humble pie. The thing is, I bet it disagrees with his colon as he passes it rather than accepting it.

exactly. he's 24 he's a man and should know better. i was always humble in defeat and victory, even at 16. the guy speaks about himself like he's some sort of god. what sort of person calls themself 'the chosen one' even if he doesn't literally mean 'messiah'....he's obviously way into himself.

i don't care how good he is or how young he is. he's in need of knock back down to earth. i would say that an ACL injury would help take care of his idea that he walks on water and is invincible.....but i wouldn't go so far as to wish harm on him or anyone.

but i'm just saying....he needs a few servings of humble pie.

Come on man. He's 24.

He's 24 and what? Is that an excuse for him acting like a brat?

At age 24 Michael Jordan knew he needed to shut the fuck up and play the damn game. He didn't whine or moan about losing. He picked himself up, dusted himself off and came back the next season with a new weapon. Eventually he earned the respect of his peers but it wasn't handed to him.

I have more respect for Kobe than Lebron, since he came in as a bench player and needed to work his ass off to improve and win over the vets.

Lebron? Dude was handed the keys to the Cavs and the league before he even played a game. He was crowned "King" before he had done anything in the NBA! That's insane.

I'm hoping he suffers some serious playoff losses for a couple of years - just to remind him he's still fucking human and that it's not all about him.

And should he ever one day win the championship his victory will be that much sweeter for the longer, harder journey IMO.

He's 24 and what? Is that an excuse for him acting like a brat?

At age 24 Michael Jordan knew he needed to shut the fuck up and play the damn game. He didn't whine or moan about losing. He picked himself up, dusted himself off and came back the next season with a new weapon. Eventually he earned the respect of his peers but it wasn't handed to him.
At that particular age, I'd argue that "his" new weapon was Pippen. ;) He was just starting to have a worthwhile supporting cast, and was still a couple years away from learning to trust his teammates (that was the "MJ as PG" era). MJ had a big advantage with "respect of his peers" because of the playoff situation at the time. His losing teams still made the playoffs. He could drop 60-odd points against Bird and show the world that he was real when it mattered.

The Magic should be happy that The Chosen One has changed over the years
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/sports/2007-06/15/xin_5106041512571932605138.jpg

"Can I show you my puppet?"

Do you guys think the Howard shot factored in or not?

I think he could have shook hands and not said a damn word. They do it in hockey after every series. The problem is that all those damn people go out on to the court (media people) and there would be no way to do an organized line like they do in hockey.

And even if you left in the heat of the moment, why can't you do your interview afterwards and say that? Take your lumps and answer the questions.

They just announced no fine for LeBron for skipping the media session.

Shaq got a $10K fine when he did it.

that's ridiculous but not surprising. the golden child of the nba can do no wrong. way to promote professionalism and good sportsmanship nba league office!

a guy like sheed does this and he'd be crucified in the media. lebron does it and he's a 'heroic competitor.'

no he's not. he's a sore loser. while you could say the same about the bad boys when they did it, there at least was a long HEATED rivalry and both teams had legit beef with each other- players 1 through 12. so while maybe it's not good sportsmanship you can understand it more.

lebron was being a bitch and couldn't take a loss like a man. watching his interview yesterday further showed that he's so used to being pampered that he doesn't even know what the definition of poor sportsmanship is. should've got that college education your majesty......

i hope he loses every year until he learns how to respect the game and those who paved the way for him.

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/gamecenter/recap/NBA_20060613_DAL@MIA


Riley didn't condone O'Neal's decision not to speak after Game 2, which also drew the Heat an NBA-imposed $25,000 penalty. "I think it's something he needs to do and live up to his obligations," Riley said.

Bottom of this game recap says 25k.

If I'm not mistaken, the Heat got hit for $25K and Shaq got $10K.

My memory ain't what it used to be, though.

what's the justification for lebron not being fined? i'd love to hear....

He's lebron james.

He's only 24...come on.

Who cares? It's just basketball.

Who cares? It's just basketball.

This is the right answer.

Who cares? It's just basketball.
You're right. I say we shut down this board and never discuss sports again.

Done. Thx glan.

Who cares?
We, the fans?

I'm a fan as well, but I'm not going to get worked up about a NON-ISSUE by typing a 500 word rant on how LeBron James is evil and wants to eat our children.

Um, I don't think anyone is actually fuming over the issue.

I think the question needs to be asked:

Why is it such a fucking problem when other players do it but when Lebron does it the league looks the other way?

There are 2 articles on Yahoo's NBA site right now complaining about Lebron walking off the floor so at least some media dudes are "taking him to task" for his actions.

But the fact he did not get fined sends a message to all players in the future:

You can skip the media interviews if you wish and you won't get fined.

AND any franchise with some balls could appeal any fine the league handed down if one of their players skip a session, citing the "Lebron Case".

It's definitely worth the discussion. If I have to hear about how LeBron is such a great teammate, a great competitor and a great leader, and have that shit shoved down my throat every time I turn on an NBA game, then I would like others to make the counterpoint and show how much of an immature little bitch he is. I don't think about this during the day, but if we're discussing basketball topics (this being the basketball forum), I figure it warrants a small discussion.

I don't think he's calling for you guys not to talk about it. Just that he doesn't care enough to.

should be fined or someshit atleast...

It's definitely worth the discussion. If I have to hear about how LeBron is such a great teammate, a great competitor and a great leader, and have that shit shoved down my throat every time I turn on an NBA game, then I would like others to make the counterpoint and show how much of an immature little bitch he is. I don't think about this during the day, but if we're discussing basketball topics (this being the basketball forum), I figure it warrants a small discussion.

Yep. He left his teammates to face the media.

Not the media! NOoooooooooooo!

Give me a break. "Both teams played hard." Not that tough.

What will Delonte West do after he's used his, "If you tell me to play with a sock, we'll play with a sock" line?

If it's not that hard, why wasn't LeBron there to do it? I thought he was their leader and captain.

Because he's a bitch and bitched out.

Nice argument though, I don't work at McDonalds so it must be because it's hard.

Never having actually won anything, LeBron is unqualified to play the bitter, dethroned champion role. There's basically no history between the teams so no "bad blood" angle to fall back on. Petulant is really the only word that comes to mind. Hmm, petulant. Kinda rolls off the tongue, that word should really be used more often than it is.

Stern withholding judgment on snub

ESPN.com news services

NBA Commissioner David Stern says he has reached out to LeBron James about his refusal to speak with the media after the Cleveland Cavaliers were eliminated from the Eastern Conference finals.

But Stern is withholding judgment and not ready to makes his views on the incident public until he talks to James about what happened, he said Tuesday on ESPN Radio.

In an appearance on "The Herd with Colin Cowherd," Stern acknowledged he was not pleased that James, the league's reigning MVP, didn't meet with the media, or shake hands with the Orlando Magic, following the Game 6 loss on Saturday night.

Noting that in the recent past, other players and teams have been fined for failing to meet the league's media guidelines, Cowherd asked why James had not been fined.

"I'm in the process of making a phone call or two now to talk to LeBron ... so I don't want to speak to that at this moment," Stern said.

"So you're not happy?" Cowherd asked.

"I think that's fair to say," Stern replied.

When further asked about James storming off the court without postgame handshakes with the Magic -- and whether one action was more troubling than the other -- Stern said both. "One goes to rules, another goes to values," he said. "I think both of them should be followed."

"Everything's big when you follow the NBA, so I'm going to step back and ask not to be pushed too hard right now [on the incident]" Stern added. "I've got a few irons in the fire."

On Monday, NBA spokesman Tim Frank told 1050 ESPN New York's Andrew Marchand that James would not be fined, adding "We haven't had any issues with him before at all."

Stern was also asked about the NBA's 19-year-old age limit for rookies, with recent allegations involving NBA Rookie of the Year Derrick Rose's one college season at Memphis raising questions about whether talented high school stars should play a year in college before entering the NBA. Rose has been connected in media reports to NCAA allegations that a player on Memphis' 2007-08 Final Four team had a stand-in take his SAT. (Memphis said Tuesday that it was unable to find proof that a former player had cheated on the SAT.)

Stern pointed out that the NBA does not require that young players spend a year at college, noting they're free to play in Europe, the NBA Development League or in junior college. That, he said, gives them a year to play against tougher competition -- and better informs the teams that might draft them.

And despite the success of some players who successfully leapt from high school to the NBA, "there's a long list that I won't mention who didn't make it" Stern said. "The idea that allegations of wrongdoing suddenly get put back on the fact that like all employers we set entry level requirements ... doesn't make any sense to me."

Stern also offered cautious optimism for the league's long-term economic outlook, saying he expects decreases in revenue next season despite recent record TV ratings for the playoffs. "Our business is affected by the economic downturn but not as badly as some others," he said. "It won't be cataclysmic but it will be noticeable."

"I'm in the process of making phone calls."

Translation: I was waiting to see if anyone would make me get off my ass about this. Fuck.

Nice argument though, I don't work at McDonalds so it must be because it's hard.
I'm not sure I follow your argument. I never said it was hard to do - but you said it was easy to talk to the media. I don't care if it's easy or hard to talk to the media, when you're the captain of your team, you can't go sulk when it's time to face the music.

I know you're just trying to play devil's advocate on this one (and I thank you for that because it adds good discussion), but LeBron proved after the game that he's not the "perfect teammate" he's made out to be.

My favorite comment he made was (paraphrasing) "I don't know if you know this about me, but I'm a competitor. I hate losing. It's hard for me to congratulate the other team after I lost." Get the fuck over yourself, LeBron. It's not any easier for your teammates.

Oh, he's a douche. To be sure. But acting like "making" your teammates deal with the media is a big deal is what I was refuting. The media are overweight never were high school superstar wannabees or not pretty enough high school prom queen hopefuls. The only thing scary about Pat Caputo is his hideous face and waste line. "Dealing" with them is only tough for morons like Ryan Leaf. If it's tough for anyone on his team, it's on them for being complete idiots.

I can't disagree with any of that statement.

You're being too literal, Fool. The media = the public. It's not about avoiding the Pat Caputos of the world, it's about publicly admitting that you lost, accepting responsibility. Something that "leaders" in sports are capable of doing.

Avoiding the media after you lose, but seeking it out when you win (or get paid) is all kinds of chicken shit, IMO.

To me, the only way to interpret his actions is "We didn't deserve to lose, this was our moment, our championship."

Ahh, the sense of entitlement.

I don't deny he's a bitch. But there are plenty of other ways to interpret the move other than what you did above.

I assume it was mostly, "Fuck that, I don't want to deal with that bullshit right now."

Yes, there are plenty of other ways to interpret it.

One could say that he was just hungry, for example.

Boom. New game.

He had to pick up his son from the sitter.

Linsday Hunter suddenly called him to check out a new property prospect.

Before the game he hired Eddie Griffin as his new chauffeur and he couldn't wait to get in that ride.

He had to poop.

This is literally the best game evar.

lol

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124390368134674801.html

That would make for a really long WTF Sportsbook contest...but it'd be fun to book.

Wojnarowski does really good work, not just here.

I could have put the whole thing in bold type, it's that good.


King James left the playoffs as a loser

By Adrian Wojnarowski, Yahoo! Sports
Jun 1, 3:20 pm EDT

I’m a winner, King James proclaimed. So, there you go. That’s his reason for rushing out of the conference finals without so much as a nod to Dwight Howard and the Orlando Magic. That’s his reason for marching to the bus and letting the Cleveland Cavaliers’ spare parts take care of his responsibilities in the interview room.

Funny, but James stayed on the court to make sure the Detroit Pistons and Atlanta Hawks paid respect to him. As it turns out, there’s one thing allowed to happen at the end of a playoff series: Everyone bows down and kisses the King’s ring. Only, LeBron doesn’t have a ring. He’s never won a game in the NBA Finals.

So, yes, maybe they just have to kiss his feet.

“It’s not being a poor sport or anything like that,” James said.

No, nothing like that. Yes, James cares so much that it isn’t possible to be gracious and humbled.

You know me, he told the reporters in Cleveland on Sunday. I’m a competitor. “If somebody beats you up, you’re not going to congratulate them,” James said. “It doesn’t make sense for me to go over and shake somebody’s hand.”

Here’s the question: Who has the guts to tell him that he sounds like an immature, self-absorbed brat?

Here’s the problem for the Cavaliers and James: No one.

It won’t be Cleveland Cavaliers ownership, front office and coaches. It won’t be the NBA. It won’t be Nike. And it sure won’t be those childhood sycophants who surround James and tell everyone what a brilliant businessman LeBron is because they can answer the phone when corporations call for a famous pitchman.

LeBron doesn’t want to win more than Michael Jordan did, but Jordan could stop and shake a winner’s hand. Magic Johnson and Larry Bird could, too. Julius Erving did. Kobe Bryant. Isiah Thomas led a walkout after losing to the Chicago Bulls after winning two NBA titles, but Joe Dumars never followed him. He stayed and shook Jordan’s hand, the way Jordan had always shook his when the Pistons had beaten him.

“M.J. had stopped, shook my hand and hugged me three straight years that we had beaten them in the playoffs,” Dumars once told me. “There was no way I was walking off the court without shaking the Bulls’ hands.”

Within the Cavs, someone needed to tell James that he embarrassed himself and the franchise, but that won’t happen. They’re too scared of him. Most league executives with knowledge of Cleveland’s operation believe it’s far more of an ownership issue, than basketball operations.

If general manager Danny Ferry and coach Mike Brown privately disdain the ridiculous posing for pictures that James started with his teammates on a 13-game winning streak, the owner is believed to see the foolishness as a marketing dream.

Someone should’ve told James that the pregame Polaroid act was belittling and beneath a championship contender, but it never happened.

All season, the Cavaliers acted too entitled, too arrogant for a team that’s won nothing. They ran out demanding that Mo Williams be made an All-Star, when the truth bore itself out in the playoffs: Cleveland has one All-Star. Nevertheless, Williams still embarrassed the Cavs with foolish proclamations and guarantees his middling talent couldn’t deliver.

^so awesome

“If you believe in karma with that nonsense,” one Western Conference executive said, “then Cleveland got what was coming to them.”

The Cavaliers are terrified of James. When you’re around them, it’s sometimes embarrassing to watch the way they tip-toe and grovel with him. In their defense, that’s how James wants it. As a childhood prodigy, that’s all LeBron’s ever known. The Cavs are at his mercy until he becomes a free agent in July of 2010, and that isn’t going to change. There’s no chance that he signs an extension this summer, because that would be the end of the drama, the intrigue and LeBron James isn’t letting that go away.

Now, Ferry goes back to the phones and starts work on surrounding James with championship talent. Cleveland is sure to revisit the Shaquille O’Neal talks with the Phoenix Suns, and James and his associates will send out word that, hey, we’ll go to New York unless the Cavs deliver him his title. Well, they’ve reached the NBA Finals and had the best record in the NBA within the past three seasons, so they must have surrounded James with something that works there.

Nevertheless, James distanced himself in losing again, after a season in which he sold himself as all for one, and one for all. James had been an MVP until the very final moments of the basketball season, and then, he embarrassed himself and acted like a petulant kid. In a world where everyone in his life is too fearful or too dependent, LeBron James goes into the summer believing his own nonsense that he walked out of this season a winner.

As usual, there’s no one to tell him.

Except maybe now, Kobe’s puppet.

Apparently, the parotid gland controls the ability to shake hands.

That article made my day.

^agree....that was flat out awesome

yeah right on target with that article.

LOVED the part about the stupid pregame routine too. i'm all for guys having fun. a little dance or something is cool and fun and gets the team fired up. but that camera thing is honestly one of the most ridiculous, stupid, embarassingly retarded things i've ever seen.

not to mention it shows how incredibly full of themselves they are- lebron leading the pack. if i was playing a game against a team that did that prior to tipoff, i'd be looking to hurt somebody for being so stupid and shaming the game like that.

everyone has their own style or whatever. but that is just the most ridiculous routine of self promotion i've ever seen.

This is what happens when your whole life nobody ever says "no"

The difference between he and Kobe...

zing!

I might be in the minority here, but LeBron is easily my most-hated player in the NBA. My future father-in-law tried telling me that I was just bitter and jealous of his talents, and then "The Walkoff" happened and I was entirely vindicated.

LeBron is a bunch of punks!

Old people seem to like to project their bitterness and jealousy on the young.

And by old people I mean Tahoe.

i'm right there with you atticus. i admire the kid's athletic talents. he is the most gifted athlete i've ever seen, by far. he's got it all, physically.

BUT while he might not be a loudmouth like terrell owens, for example, he is every bit the self promotor TO is. he is super full of himself and has won nothing yet. NOTHING. an MVP? big deal. he's a phenomenal talent and has achieved some impressive feats at his age.

but he's not even a fraction as good as he thinks he is or as he is hyped to be. i will admire his athletic gifts but will forever root for him to fail....until he can humble himself and come back down to earth. he thinks he's god's gift to basketball and the planet in general. i don't like that attitude in anyone and when i see it in him, i can't help but hope he learns his lesson about humility and respect for the game.

Will LeBron form his own league?

If not now, when?

Fuck LeBitch.

he doesn't need to- he already owns the nba. stern, the refs, and all the media who cover the league are already his bitches.

just a shame for him they screwed up this year and forgot to make sure he won the title. THAT is why he was so upset- when you own the league, you expect to win the title. lebron was entitled to win it this year and he didn't, hence the frustration on his part. *roll eyes*

He really missed a golden opportunity. This was really a down year for so many teams. Obviously we had a down year. Boston lost KG. SA had their injury problems. Houston lost Yao and Tmac. The Lakers don't have Bynum healthy yet. Orlando lost Nelson (at least up until the finals).

On top of that you still have young teams like Portland that will improve.

and yet with all those stars aligned for them they could not get the job done. Regardless of start treatment, conspiracies, etc...this was really all set up for him to win it and he could not.

I doubt he won't be back in the finals, but will the path ever be easier than it was this year?

yup they blew it.

put a 24 year old jordan on that team and they'd be 2 weeks away from polishing their trophy. jordan had the drive and determination to will his team to wins and take over right when his team needed it.

that is why i hate the comparisons to MJ. jordan was head and shoulders above lebron and anyone else in that regard.

Let's not overrate early MJ. He never had a winning season without Pippen. His early career was full of lights-out individual performances and awesome will to win, but he didn't have the team and teamwork to complement his abilities and drive.

A 34 year old Jordan would've won it all with the current Cavs team.

Lebron's first 6 seasons:
Missed playoffs, Missed playoffs, 2nd round, finals, 2nd round, ECF

MJ's first 6 seasons:
1st round, 1st round, 1st round, 2nd round, ECF, ECF

He won 6 titles in 8 years after that. He did get them in the playoffs 2 seasons before Pippen (they made it all 3 years, but he only played 18 games one year).

The thing you can say about MJ is that he/his team got better and better until they finally got over the hump (Detroit). Lebron hasn't had a dominant team in his way at all. MJ also didn't win 60 games a year until Phil came along, which highlights the point that Brown's bad coaching is a big factor.

that's just it- if jordan had to go against today's nba with today's rules and he was 24, he would win it all with that cavs team IMO.

jordan faced a MUCH tougher road facing dynasties like the celtics, lakers, and pistons. lebron has no such team even close to that level this year. and IMO his supporting cast is more than adequate to get the job done.

Lebron's first 6 seasons:
Missed playoffs, Missed playoffs, 2nd round, finals, 2nd round, ECF

MJ's first 6 seasons:
1st round, 1st round, 1st round, 2nd round, ECF, ECF

He won 6 titles in 8 years after that. He did get them in the playoffs 2 seasons before Pippen (they made it all 3 years, but he only played 18 games one year).

The thing you can say about MJ is that he/his team got better and better until they finally got over the hump (Detroit). Lebron hasn't had a dominant team in his way at all. MJ also didn't win 60 games a year until Phil came along, which highlights the point that Brown's bad coaching is a big factor.
MJ's Bulls made it to the playoffs with losing records. At the time, there were only 11 teams in the Eastern Conference, and 8 of them went to the playoffs. They just expanded the playoff slots from 12 to 16, but hadn't grown the # of teams in the league to account for it. It was like hockey teams making it to the playoffs.

Hell, MJ's team made it to the playoffs with him injured most of the seasons with a 30-52 record. :)

I think what the guys are saying is that if you took MJ @ 24 years of age, put him on this Cav team in today's NBA you would be looking at a Championship Team!

In other words: Lebron ain't as good in today's "don't touch me I'm god" as MJ "I AM GOD" would be.

But fuck the comparisons, the mere mention of them brings Jordan down to Lebron's level.

The fact is Lebron was a bitch for walking off and not shaking hands. The league should fucking do something about it. If they don't any other player that they try to fine should appeal and win.

Case Closed.

haha- stern caves to pressure and admit he was wrong. lebron WILL be fined.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/playoffs/2009/news/story?id=4232264

good. but it is a bit scarey that it took some public outcry and media criticism for stern to 'change his mind' about this in the first place.

the fact that he was given a pass in the first place is a sign of how lebron has the league by its balls.

I think what the guys are saying is that if you took MJ @ 24 years of age, put him on this Cav team in today's NBA you would be looking at a Championship Team!
I think people are misremembering MJ at age 24. He was individually dominant. But, he did not fully get the whole "how to make a team" work aspect at that age. He hadn't gotten hardened and annealed by all those Pistons losses. MJ lost lots of playoff series performing superlatively like LeBron did. He was a day-1 superstar, but megastar was a litttle ways off.

LeBron spends more than $25K on nail clippers.

LeBron spends more than $25K on nail clippers.

LeBron is so good that his nails clip themselves. And cook dinner.

LeBron spends more than $25K on nail clippers.

He should get his money back if that's the case. He always has to fix them during the game. damn things don't work.

no but he does spend more than that on baby powder.

There’s being a lot made of LeBron’s failure to congratulate the Orlando Magic after they eliminated his highly favored Cavs team. The Kingsy’s display of poor sportsmanship is drawing a lot of comparisons to the walkout staged by the Pistons after being swept out of the playoffs by the Bulls in 1991.

Now I don’t want to excuse the Bad Boys actions at all. I wish it never happened personally. But I want to draw some separation between LBjer’s explanation that that he’s a “winner” and “competitor” and couldn’t find it within himself to shake hands and the reasoning behind the Bad Boy’s refusal to knuckle under Jordan’s Bulls.

There’s a big difference in my opinion.

In the past the Pistons had always honored the tradition of the on-court congratulations at the end of tough series. They did it year after year with Boston despite all the bad blood. They did it after a gut-wrenching and controversial 7 game NBA Finals series with the Lakers in ‘88. Whether they accepted the defeat or not the paid their respects to the advancing team.

Much like the Celtics knew in ‘88, the Pistons probably knew they could no longer hold the Bulls down. It was Chicago’s time. After three straight years of playoff exits at the hands of the Pistons the Bulls were finally ready to take Detroit’s place as the Eastern Conference’s representatives.

If was a tough season for the Pistons. Age and injuries were catching up to them. All they had left going into that series was pride and that wasn’t going to matador the Bulls. MJ and his supporting cast was matured, battled-tested and ready to wear the belts.

The problem was that the Bulls had a little brother complex that they wouldn’t let go of. Instead of saying the right things they set out on a smear campaign that disrespected the Pistons and their legacy.

It’s no secret that the Bad Boys played rough, but it was always within the frame work of the rules of the day. The “Jordan Rules” made you earn your points. They were as much psychological as they were physical.

Instead of accepting the challenge the Bulls whined and cried that the Pistons played too rough and even went as far to suggest that their championships weren’t legit. The politicking won out. Instead of a competitive series it was a whistle fest.

So the walk-out wasn’t due to a culmination of what transpired on the court, it was a result of what was said off of it. It wasn’t a spur of the moment thing. Isiah, Billy Lambs, and the rest knew they were going to do this to show the Bulls what they thought of their disrespect. Basically, take the torch and shove it up your ass.

It’s said that the walk-out played a part in Isiah being left off the ‘92 Dream Team. The irony is that walking out did more to tarnish the Bad Boys legacy than the Bulls contempt for their style of play ever could.

http://pistonsnationblog.com/2009/06/01/lebrons-walkout-vs-the-91-bad-boys/

that is one of the best pieces of writing i've seen on the topic. one of the best pieces of writing in human history actually.

seriously though, that is spot on.

IMO one situation has nothing to do with other.

You walk off without shaking hands = fine.

No debate, no excuses, no bullshit.

IMO one situation has nothing to do with other.

You walk off without shaking hands = fine.

No debate, no excuses, no bullshit.


The fine is for snubbing the media, not the Magic.

Fuck the media and fuck Lebron James.

I hope Cleveland doesn't keep him and then he goes to NY and they never win a title with him either.

I hope when his career is over he gets remembered for being a no-ring having hype machine that wasn't as good as Nique!

Fuck Lebron James. Witness me smashing the fuck out of your cocky ass as you drive through the lane. Punk!