Throughout his entire career, LeBron James has been covered in the news with long term projections in mind. When he was just a teenager at St. Vincent-St. Mary's High School in Akron, ESPN came to town just to air his basketball games. They even brought Dick Vitale. They saw him as a No. 1 draft pick probably when he was 16. And he was. They even half-saw him getting drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers. He was. They saw him winning multiple championships. He ... well, he got to the NBA Finals, but he and his team never tasted a Finals victory.
The next progression in the media forecasting James future is what will happen when his current contract with the Cavaliers runs out in 2010. Naturally, with his love of New York City, many are expecting a "LeBronx James" phenomenon 1½ seasons from now and signing with the New York Knicks — or perhaps the relocated New Jersey Nets. Never did the future and present collide so annoyingly than it did in the form of coverage of the Cavs playing the Knicks on Tuesday night. The Cavs won 119-101, but the final score was inconsequential to Knicks fans, because they hope that, with the welcome James received Tuesday night, in two years this will be the kind of victory they will enjoy. The New York Underpants might be a lowly 7-7, but a recent Knicks trade freed up salary cap space for that fabled 2010 offseason, when a team from the Big Apple can fork over enough money to ink the human who will lead their team to the promised land.
Did I mention there's still 1½ seasons left until then? [proofreads] Okay, I did.
It's tough to remember when someone was visualized as a free agent this early into the end of their contract, not to mention eying the destination in the speculative crystal ball. A throwaway morsel of praise James gave to Knicks coach Mike D'Antoni was a major story to the New York Post. Hey, he likes the Knicks coach! He loved playing for him in the Olympics! He's bound to love playing for the Knicks in two years!!
Article comments
1 - brandonpimp
he need 2 play wit k -g