LeBron deserves the backlash

LeBron James is lucky the only things burning after “The Decision” were a few jerseys.

Cavaliers fans and Cleveland residents deserve to be fuming over the terms in which James left this city high and dry.

Yes, LeBron put Cleveland back on the map. He played his heart out, left it all on the court, for seven long years. But isn’t that what he was paid to do? His “blood, sweat and tears” were rewarded rather handsomely with devotion, dollars, billboards, parties, sold-out seasons and any perk imaginable. He was handed the keys to this city immediately after being drafted by the Cavaliers in 2003. His high school friends were given roles within the team and the front office surrounded him with everything he wanted, including high-dollar players who placed ownership in the luxury-tax bracket.

Speaking of, let’s remember that LeBron James never chose to resurrect Cleveland; the Cavaliers chose him. He was signed by the Cavs in 2003 and was a restricted free agent in 2007. He couldn’t leave Cleveland in 2007, but what he could do is sign a deal for the minimum amount of years (three), which he did, knowing he’d want to explore his options as soon as possible.

Moreover, are we really sure James “went hard for seven years,” as Dwight Howard defended on Twitter? He certainly went soft in numerous playoff games, most notably Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals against the Boston Celtics, after which the entire country was questioning his motivation. After all the talk about winning, after every move the Cavaliers organization made to put the winning pieces in place, he shot a free throw left-handed with a playoff game on the line.

But the bitterness and anger boiling over in the city of Cleveland today isn’t so much about what LeBron James did on the court. It’s about a homegrown player who has become more concerned with his celebrity status than his fans and the game of basketball. It’s about this game of charades James played over the past two months leading up to The Decision.

James didn’t need to parade celebrities downtown Cleveland for weeks while adoring fans held signs begging him to stay. He knew he was ultimately going to break their hearts. He could have easily announced his decision to play in Miami on his new Twitter account when all the other free agents were making verbal commitments. Instead he chose to make his announcement the most narcissistic way possible, keeping every team and every fan hostage in a made-for-ratings reality TV show, building drama until he became the last noteworthy free agent to commit.

He intentionally took casual fans—everyday Cleveland residents who otherwise could care less where another uneducated-yet-overpaid athlete calls home—and got them deeply involved, only to break their hearts on national TV.

All the lights were shining on James Thursday night during his one-hour special on national TV. After his decision to join friends over family, the spotlight on Cleveland faded a little bit. For that, we deserve to be bitter. If it takes a few burning jerseys to restore that light, then so be it.