Well, well, well what do we have here? It appears a certain New York newspaper has decided to throw a curve ball in the Lebron to NY hype that's been generating for the past few days. Yes we've all heard about the Stephen A. Smith report and how his sources have “confirmed” Lebron has been “quietly” asking for more information about Donnie Walsh and Mike D'Antoni. Well, a certain New York newspaper doesn't appear to be sold on the idea of the biggest basketball player in the world playing in the biggest city in the world. Let's take a look at the article entitled: LeBron James should think twice about New York and Knicks if winning NBA title is real goal. Written by: Ebenezer Samuel
"I'm offering you some friendly advice - not the kind you'll get from Mayor Bloomberg or the lap dancers at Scores:"You can already see where this is headed
. Almost immediately he comes out of left field with a blow below the belt. Why throw in the lap dancers at Scores? You would think Ebenezer wouldn't want the opportunity to cover the most gifted basketball player to come around in the last __(fill in the blank) years.
"Think twice about coming to New York. Contrary to the Big Apple belief that The King plus a superstar sidekick equals the first NBA title in these parts since '73, your signing doesn't guarantee a ring."See, this is where we could get side tracked if we're not paying attention. Nobody expects the Knicks to win a ring next year. The fans just want to see a good product on the court and what better product to have than Lebron James? The Knicks may not win a championship next year with Lebron and Bosh but they will go very, very deep in the playoffs which after the past 10 seasons is more than good enough. Ebenezer, if you think that's a fail, try telling that to the Knicks fans that pay those outrageous prices to go see a 25 – 30 win team almost on an every other night basis.
"Yes, you're a force who will single-handedly put the Knicks back in the playoffs and fill the Garden with more oohs and ahhs than the Westminster Dog Show"
Okay so what's' the problem Ebenezer? If he will put the Knicks back in the playoffs and get the Garden jumping again single handed, what would happen if Bosh came along with him? Just how far do you think those 2 can take the Knicks come late April, May and hopefully June?
"Land here, and your career arc could easily mirror Dominique Wilkins' instead of Michael's or Magic's or Bird's."
Mirror Dominique? I'm sorry Ebenezer but did Nique leave the Hawks in his prime as a free agent? Did Dominique ever have a low post player on his team that required a double team? If I remember correctly, Nique was traded to the Hawks a little after he was drafted and he stayed there past the age of 30. I really don't see how Lebrons career could mirror Niques in any way. Let's not forget that Nique played against Michael, Larry and Magic and I would say they are 3 of the main reasons, if not all the reasons why Nique didn't get a ring. Come on Ebenezer, your better than that.
"There's been exactly one exception to the rule. Fourteen years ago, Shaquille O'Neal left Orlando for L.A., then led the Lakers to three titles."
Okay now correct me if I'm wrong, Shaq was the 2nd best player in the league then only behind Jordan right? That move paid dividends to the Lakers organization in the form of 3 championships. The best thing about it is that Shaq needed a Robin to his Batman and he had it in Kobe. Why can't Lebron and Bosh do the same thing Ebenezer?
"We want to believe LeBron-to-NYC will be like "Diesel goes to Hollywood," but even in the Leastern Conference and even with Cleveland out of the picture, the Knicks are a long way from a title. Constructing a contender takes years and patience,"
Do you mean like the Celtics? How one year they won 16 games and then the next year they won the championship? Or maybe your talking about the Miami Heat who traded for Shaquille O'neal and James Posey then the next year they won a championship. How silly of me, you must be talking about the Pistons when they traded for Rasheed Wallace in the middle of the season and they went on to win a championship that same season. It does not take years of patience to build a championship contender Ebenezer. Just thought I would throw that out there with a few examples to help you realize this. Also Ebenezer, how many teams do you have in front of the Knicks in the “Leastern Conference” if they sign Lebron and Bosh?
"which is why just eight teams have earned championship hardware over the last three decades."
I would imagine your talking about the Lakers, Bulls, Spurs, Heat, Rockets, Pistons, Celtics and Sixers. What else did those teams have? With the exception of the Pistons team, each and every one of those remaining 7 teams had a superstar (not an all star) and in more cases than not, they had 2 superstars. They also had a dominant post game and a dominant perimeter game. That's how you win championships Ebenezer. You win them with superstars who dominate.
"Yes, LeBron, you're a rock-solid cornerstone. But stat-stuffing big man Chris Bosh, the player most hope will join you here, couldn't win in Toronto; will that change in New York?"
I'm sorry but did Bosh have Lebron on his team in Toronto?
"They say you'll fit in perfectly with Mike D'Antoni's up-tempo system, meaning Playstation-type regular season numbers. But just in case you didn't notice Thursday's grind-it-out Game 7, that title you want will come down to the defensive end of the floor, hardly D'Antoni's forte."
Just in case you didn't notice Ebenezer, D'Antoni has appeared in the Western (not the Leastern) conference finals twice in his 4 ½ years in Phoenix. He must have been doing something right.
"A bit more bad news: If the Knicks can't convince David Lee to return next season, your best supporting castmate will be 6-11 Danilo Gallinari, who shoots threes like Steve Nash - and rebounds like him, too."
Now please tell me who on the Cavs would you prefer to take over Gallinari? You can automatically remove Shaq, Jamison and Parker due to their age of 33 and above. Would you take Mo “now you see me, now you don't” Williams over Gallinari? How about Anderson “look at me I'm flopping” Varejao? Answer that question Ebenezer. Do you like J.J. “my jump shot sucks” Hickson that much? Oh and just for the record, Nash averaged 3 (3.3) rebounds to Gallinari's 5 (4.9). And where did the comparison to Nash come from anyway?
"And the next clutch shot this roster hits will be its first."
Really? Hey Ebenezer, are you from New York? You do realize that New York has the smartest fans in the world right? Why would you insult their intelligence, like none of the Knicks hit a clutch shot this year? You did see those close games the Knicks played this year correct? Especially down the stretch of the season when Douglas and Walker hit clutch shots. And who could forget Gallinari's performance against Melo and the Nuggets? That wasn't clutch Ebenezer? Maybe you should have told us your definition of clutch before you decided to use it in a sentence.
"If you couldn't win it all with a sharpshooting point guard (Mo Williams), a Hall of Fame center at the end of his career (Shaq) and a fill-it-up veteran small forward (Antawn Jamison), will this cast of characters serve your Highness any better?"
That is the question that everybody is waiting to be answered. Knicks fans have waited a long, long time for July 1, 2010 to roll around. It's finally here and everybody has an opinion about it. I just hope if Lebron signs with the Knicks, people won't change their opinion. There's nothing worse than a front runner and I have a feeling we're going to see a lot of it if Lebron signs with the Knicks.
Hey Ebenezer, tell your reporter buddies there's a new sheriff in town. And his name is DVJ.
Whenever I get wind of an article such as yours that shows zero effort and even less research, I'm going to expose it.
Don't forget to check out the NBA draft this Thursday, June 24th at 7PM EST on ESPN
www.dvjnba.com
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6/21/2010 4:16 PM