LeBron

[Jeffy25]

I think he is a top three....but it all comes down to longevity at this point. Can he maintain...and will he remain in the NBA? Will he remain a Cav etc

[Arctic Blast]

I think it's a lock he stays in basketball...seriously, he'd have to accept a league minimum salary to play ANY other sport (and I mean a minor league minimum salary, if that sport has a minors system).

I'd love to see him stay with the Cavs, but I don't know. If I'm his agent, I'm BEGGING the guy not to sign an extension, because DAMN is the commission I get off the contract he signs for as a free agent going to be huge!

[etothep]

I think it's a lock he stays in basketball...seriously, he'd have to accept a league minimum salary to play ANY other sport (and I mean a minor league minimum salary, if that sport has a minors system).

I'd love to see him stay with the Cavs, but I don't know. If I'm his agent, I'm BEGGING the guy not to sign an extension, because DAMN is the commission I get off the contract he signs for as a free agent going to be huge!

He can get a bigger contract by signing with cleveland (they can offer him 1 more year at the max contract than any other team)

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

I think it's a lock he stays in basketball...seriously, he'd have to accept a league minimum salary to play ANY other sport (and I mean a minor league minimum salary, if that sport has a minors system).

I think the things about him going to other sports were jokes, and I think what Jeffy was referring to were the rumors/possibility of him playing overseas for 50 million a year.

Also, with the way Free Agency works in the NBA, aren't the Cav's the only one's who can offer him a "max salary", or something like that? I remember hearing something about it when Gilbert Arenas was coming up for Free Agency.

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

He can get a bigger contract by signing with cleveland (they can offer him 1 more year at the max contract than any other team)

Yep, I think that's what I was thinking of.

[Arctic Blast]

Yeah, you're both right...I had completely forgotten about that.

And I was pretty sure it was kidding around, talking about sticking with the NBA. LeBron awhile ago talked about wanting to play football, though, and a number of people really seemed to take it as a real possibility, so you never know anymore.

[etothep]

Yeah, you're both right...I had completely forgotten about that.

And I was pretty sure it was kidding around, talking about sticking with the NBA. LeBron awhile ago talked about wanting to play football, though, and a number of people really seemed to take it as a real possibility, so you never know anymore.

haha, he just says whatever will keep his names on the front page of national papers or websites

[OregonDuck1989]

LeBron was a D1 prospect in high school football.

[daves]

He'll be a great scorer, but most players are remembered for CHAMPIONSHIPS! This puts player like Wade, Duncan, Garnet, Shaq and KOBE above him all time. Already he is 5th in this generation because of it. A ring or two and he's one of the best all time. No rings and he's somewhere lower than Karl Malone all time.

[OregonDuck1989]

He'll be a great scorer, but most players are remembered for CHAMPIONSHIPS! This puts player like Wade, Duncan, Garnet, Shaq and KOBE above him all time. Already he is 5th in this generation because of it. A ring or two and he's one of the best all time. No rings and he's somewhere lower than Karl Malone all time.

The unfortunate thing is: your correct. Championships define players in all sports and LeBron has yet to win one. Is that his fault? Of course not. The Cavs have yet to put a team around him capable of winning a title. Basketball is still a team sport. But that is what players a remembered for.

[etothep]

He'll be a great scorer, but most players are remembered for CHAMPIONSHIPS! This puts player like Wade, Duncan, Garnet, Shaq and KOBE above him all time. Already he is 5th in this generation because of it. A ring or two and he's one of the best all time. No rings and he's somewhere lower than Karl Malone all time.

This argument is too easy to refute. Was Will Perdue really a better player than Karl Malone simply cause Perdue won 4 championships & Malone won zero? Same goes in football. Marino isn't a worse QB than Trent Dilfer cause Dilfer won a Super Bowl & Dan didn't.

[OregonDuck1989]

This argument is too easy to refute. Was Will Perdue really a better player than Karl Malone simply cause Perdue won 4 championships & Malone won zero? Same goes in football. Marino isn't a worse QB than Trent Dilfer cause Dilfer won a Super Bowl & Dan didn't.

It might not be his opinion it's just the way things go. Especially in basketball, your examples are extremes obviously no one considers it to that extreme but surely you can agree that people do use championships when judging two great players.

[etothep]

My point in using those extremes is that teams win the championships. Punishing a player like Lebron b/c his best teammate to this point in his career has been Mo 'You couldn't pick me out of a lineup' Williams doesn't make any sense to me. It's like saying Pujols didn't deserve the MVP this past season b/c his team didn't make the playoffs.

[OregonDuck1989]

My point in using those extremes is that teams win the championships. Punishing a player like Lebron b/c his best teammate to this point in his career has been Mo 'You couldn't pick me out of a lineup' Williams doesn't make any sense to me. It's like saying Pujols didn't deserve the MVP this past season b/c his team didn't make the playoffs.

Mo Williams was just acquired this year. And has actually been a major reason the Cavs have been playing so well (he's averaging 17.7 points a game) .

But your point is why I said

The unfortunate thing is: your correct.

Because it's not right, it is just how things go. Especially in basketball. People remember championships and it takes a special player like Karl Malone for us to even remember a player that did not win.

It's not right, we all know that. It's just a fact. People judge on championships. If LeBron brings Cleveland a title he will be forever remembered as one of the games greatest by not just those that actually know he was...but by everyone.

[etothep]

Mo Williams was just acquired this year. And has actually been a major reason the Cavs have been playing so well (he's averaging 17.7 points a game) .

I know, hence why I don't get why people would say Lebron isn't on Kobe or Wade's level when Lebron has had the worst supporting cast of the 3 of them

Because it's not right, it is just how things go. Especially in basketball. People remember championships and it takes a special player like Karl Malone for us to even remember a player that did not win.

It's not right, we all know that. It's just a fact. People judge on championships. If LeBron brings Cleveland a title he will be forever remembered as one of the games greatest by not just those that actually know he was...but by everyone.

I'm just saying it kills me how not only casual fans, but renowned sports writers judge players by championships. I mean, if the sports writers would just take an introductory course in logic at their local community colleges, they would stop throwing this idea out to the public and we could have much better arguments on who is/was great...