The LeBron Watch

One of the guys that I respect in Blogfrica is Drew Magary. You can read him at Deadspin, NBC, Penthouse and Kissing Suzy Kolber, and he's probably the best in the business right now, given that it's a full-time gig for him and he's genuinely talented.

Tonight on Deadspin, Magary buried LeBron James for the free agency routine, and I suspect it's going to become the dominant meme for the next few years, regardless of where the man goes, or what he does on the court. Which makes what I'm going to say here sound contrarian. (Here's the link to Magary's rant. By the way, there's curse words.)

If I were James, I wouldn't have done this any other way.

Because, um, he's got to decide between:

a) Door number one, where he stays home, makes the most money, gets the best PR and keeps his friends and family happiest,

b) Door number two, where he walks away from cash, signs on in Miami with two injury-prone stars and a roster of nine guys making the minimum,

c) Door number three, where he goes to several other places where he's still Championship Or Failure, and again, walks away from cash

Well, I'd take some time with that decision, too. Probably weeks more than James is taking.

Babe Ruth is credited with saying that no man that works for another can be said to be overpaid. It's probably a bunch of crap, in that Ruth probably wasn't that coherent, but so be it.

Now, I don't know what your situation is, economically. I also don't much care. But I do know this: having leverage is a wonderful thing, and it's a rare and limited thing.

James hasn't quit on his team to find a better situation, a la Brett Favre. He hasn't drawn out this negotiation to an absurd degree; the clock started on July 1, and it will end in a week. Unlike Kevin Durant, who Magary praises for signing an extension with no fuss today, James doesn't have a vibrant young roster in Cleveland that makes his decision easier.

And, um, there's also this. Regardless of the performance of his teams in the playoffs, or his performance in any of the defeats that ended their seasons, he's hands-down the best player on the planet. Points, boards, assists, defense... he's the whole package. Sure, it'd be nice if he didn't turn the ball over quite so much, or if the three-point and free throw percentages went up, but he's still getting better, and I'll take my chances with him more than any other player.

So, really, what's the problem with what he's done here? It's not as if he's forced the world to watch this dance. In a few months, when he's doing his thing on a court, we'll quickly forget about this. If he goes to a new team and does well, we'll speculate on how deep they'll go into the playoffs, and the wisdom of his choice. If he stays in Cleveland and attracts some other talent and/or develops JJ Hickson, we'll laud him for that.

So, folks, take a deep breath. James is still the most watchable basketball player on the planet. And if he's no longer your personal hero... well, um, grow up. He's not Kobe Bryant. He's not any of the self-righteous Celtics. He's a better player than Chris Paul, Dwayne Wade, Carmelo Anthony and anyone else you want to name.

Now, let's see where he goes. It won't be my team, so honestly, I'm not going to think a whole lot different about him.