LeBron James played his last game in a Cleveland Cavaliers jersey on May 13, 2010 when they lost to the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference finals. We all know about “The Decision” and a lot criticize him for it. I have been a fan of him long before he took his talents to the South Beach but this post is by no means trying to justify his move. I just want to put some my feelings into words.
First of all, I am so delighted not only to see Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference finals, but watching them get there by winning the series 4-1 against the Celtics. I am really proud of how the guys played, but right now, I just want to focus on Game 5. I don’t know about you, but I found the first half frustrating to watch aside from Dwayne Wade. He was incredible. LeBron did not play his best overall but the way he closed the game by scoring 10 straight points was amazing to watch.
"Finally getting over this hump against this team. Everything I went through this summer with the decision and deciding to come down here and be a part of this team.… All the backlash I got from it. The talks me and D-Wade had. I was very emotional at that point."
Call it “payback” or “redemption”, it was nice to see him and Wade win against the Celtics in the playoffs. They both had each other’s backs throughout the season. I love watching the players get emotional. As Doc Rivers said, “I don’t think you can play this sport and be a winner without emotion.”
“As much as I loved my team-mates back in Cleveland, as much as I loved home, I knew I couldn’t do it by myself against that team.”
Now do not say that he’s insulting or having a dig at his former team-mates because that was not what he meant. As great of a player he is, he could not do it alone and by “it” I meant win a championship. The pressure on his shoulders was too much to take. LeBron is human after all.
I am not from Cleveland nor America for that matter, but I do know what it’s like to have someone you idolise in your favourite team leave the club. If you know me, you’ll know that I like Fernando Torres and to see him leave Liverpool Football Club the way he did was devastating especially when I just kept hoping. But he transferred in the middle of the season in the end. I remember going through so many emotions at the time. You could say I went through the five stages of grief.
Why was it that these two hurt us all so much? It was because we loved them or saw them as heroes in a way. We saw them as legends in the future. I guess the thing that hurt most was the way they left. In hindsight, who hasn’t made a mistake or done something they regret sooner or later? I am not convincing you to forgive them. That is only up to you.
The difference between LeBron James and Fernando Torres however is that I believe one made the right decision while the other did not, but I will continue to support them.
“Life is too short to go through harboring grudges and hating people.”
