No one even cracked on Ron Ron's shirt... lol

I wonder if Harry Reid even knows who Ron Ron is...

GO LAKERS!!!!!

Looks like the biggest opposition to our 3-peat & 17th title - as well as Boston/Miami/Chicago/Orlando's attempt to unseat us - is:

DARTH STERN and his new trigger happy Tech rules.

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news;_ylt=AiWQVkqG8AKuFRsUYF.Nqci8vLYF?slug=aw-sternofficiating101410

KobeMVP888: I know The Onion is a satire site, but the funny thing, that might actually be true... lol

- - -

utz: The new Tech rules is just the league trying to stop Kobe - since no player can...

GO LAKERS!!!!!

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news;_ylt=AiWQVkqG8AKuFRsUYF.Nqci8vLYF?slug=aw-sternofficiating101410

Great article, thanks utz

For those T-Mac fans:

TMac's knee strikes again: He's out for the remaining 4 games of Detroit's preseason...

What a surprise...(sarcasm)

I don’t deny that LeBron may end up being a great player. On the other hand, he could just as well in my opinion end up being Dominique to Kobe’s MJ, a great player who could never win a championship. The point I was really trying to make is that the reason so many people think LeBron is a great player is because of his great athleticism – not because he has shown he has a championship character, work ethic, or killer instinct – all of which count much more in my mind than pure athleticism. Next to Wilt Chamberlain, LeBron is undoubtedly the greatest athlete that has ever played pro basketball but that does not mean that he is or will be the greatest player in the game.

Posted by: LakerTom | October 14, 2010 at 10:21 AM
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LakerTom - Lebron has already proven he's a great player. No disrespect to Nique, but Lebron has already accomplished more than him.

To say Lebron's game is just athleticism is irresponsible. His court vision and anticipation is superior...maybe not Magic/Bird/Cooz/Kidd...but still excellent.

To say he has no work ethic or killer instinct is just wrong. LakerTom, I know you have a better basketball mind than this. Lebron has worked hard on his game since he was a child. He has carried his team and made a lot of big plays in the playoff...please don't make me list all of his playoff accomplishments.

@Lew - 1971 a very good year. My biggest musical memory from 71 is Marvin's What's Going On album. Still one of the greatest albums ever. Here's a jam from 71 I bet you haven't heard in years...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3YDfcDzCoc&feature=fvsr

@Jefe - hmmm 1972. First thought is always Don McLean's American Pie. Long story on why...lol. Anyway here's a classic from 72 that will have you singing along...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ECgBXkil7YI

Come to think of it, lebron is a more athletic version of Ron Ron, with less heart and guts...

GO LAKERS!!!!!

utz: I guess Mitch made the right call once again, not going with T-Mac.

I feel bad for him, he doesn't seem like a bad guy, just snake-bit. That's why people that compare Oden to Bynum are wrong - microfracture is much, much worse than ligament damage.

GO LAKERS!!!!!

utzworld - ah, you can never go wrong with Marvin. I was in fact working to his stuff, the "Reverend" Al Green's and Otis' fairly recent 2 CD Live on the Sunset Strip today. Screw the Heat, that's MY Big Three.

@63 Footer: What's the name of the Otis album so I can add it to my list of iTunes music to download? Al Green is DANGEROUS...the Mini Banner Holders are here because of the aftermath of us listening to "Simply Beautiful" too many times. :)

oops s/b On politicians....

JLF: OK I will just for you my friend.
No Bill, the ones in the psyche ward use horezontal stripes, my stripes are vertical.

-

ROFL! Now THAT's what I'm talkin about!

Isn't that one conversation to be a fly on a wall on? Someone (hint: MM!) should ask Ron Ron what he talked about with Bubba...

GO LAKERS!!!!!

n how bout some love to Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass? Maybe a few years older but he's gotta be in the mix! lol....

KobeMVP888 -

That faux news story was hilarious. The Onion does a remarkable job of capturing bits of truth in ridiculously outlandish made-up scenarios.

I know hating on Lebron is the cool thing to do these days. But I learned during the Kobe fiasco, you just have to appreciate greatness. LeBron is a great basketball player with a real chance to go down in history as one of the best who ever played the game. While some may hate on that, it is the truth.
Posted by: Rocky | October 14, 2010 at 10:05 AM
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I'm with you Rocky. Can't deny Lebron's greatness. I also believed he had a legit shot of going down as GOAT before the "Decision". But since he had to joined up with DWade to try to get a chip -- he lost the top level greatness IMHO.

Posted by: LRob | October 14, 2010 at 12:38 PM
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I agree with Rocky's premise and I also agree that "The Decision" might wind up being a mild version of Kobe's Colorado. Kobe had a much steeper hill to climb to resurrect his image, which remains forever tarnished in the minds of many fans. While LeBron may never regain the respect of Cleveland fans, I think he'll have a much easier time repairing his image than Kobe did both in the USA and around the world.

I think that by playing on the same team as Wade, we will witness how much greater LeBron is than his South Beach teammate over time. Championships will come and all will be forgotten (except in Cleveland). He really didn't screw over anyone else. For example, the Knicks and Bulls, in particular, took the same risk that Miami, New Jersey and the Clippers did, so why should their fans hold a long time grudge? It pains me to say that, but I think there is a good chance that history will not treat LeBron as a villain. The fact is that his "talents" are truly mind blowing and I believe he will learn how to be a champion and a killer. Don't forget, they just put this team together. The tweaking hasn't even begun.

"LRob: If I may interject myself into your answer to LakerTom, you're talking-up a player that has melted down repeatedly in the playoffs. Plus, have you ever watched the end-of-game situations when he literally was playing 1-on-5, and costing the Cavs wins in any close game (outside of the 3-pt shot miracle against the Magic a couple of years back)."
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Did Lebron ever have a Gasol on his team? Did he EVER have a coach like Phil Jackson? Did he ever have the support when he needed it?

He won plenty of close games in the playoffs not to mention he had that spectacular Game 5 performance against Detroit in 2007. Did he win it all? Of course not but he brought his Cavs in 2007 to the NBA Finals and while that path was much easier than it was in the West he still beat the Pistons (and don't make things up like "Oh the Pistons are chokers" or so).

The same thing was said about Mike before he three-peated twice with 6 times where he "choked" before becoming legendary.

To be fair to Lebron and not biased Pro-Lakers Magic had Kareem who was still very great enough in 1985 to earn the Finals MVP and win over Boston, a DPOY in Michael Cooper, and two lottery picks in James Worthy and Byron Scott. Kobe had Shaq early in his career then got Gasol/Odom/Bynum then Ron. Heck Larry Bird had McHale/Parish/Dennis Johnson and later on Bill Walton. Who did Lebron have? Mo Williams and by no means is he even a consistent All-Star. And almost every NBA fan would agree that Mike Brown did not deserve that Coach of the Year in 2009.

I hate defending Lebron with him being a narcissistic jerk but to downplay his accomplishment and saying he choked a lot (remember 2006 playoffs against PHX......who choked there?) and isn't a winner are forgetting that Kobe has gotten HIS help that was needed to be in the discussion with Michael/Earvin/Larry. Now that Lebron has his help even if he is 1b on his current team who knows.

@LROB… More specifically, I never meant that LeBron’s game is JUST athleticism or that he has NO work ethic or killer instinct. He obviously does have some skills and has worked to improve his game since coming into the league. What I am saying, however, is that whatever he has accomplished so far pales compared to Kobe Bryant and has not been enough in my opinion to classify him yet as a great player. What he does the rest of his career will determine whether he will be another Dominique Wilkins, a player who could never win a championship despite all the personal awards and records, or whether he will truly become a great player.
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TOM

KB Blitz: I will give you that lebron has never been properly coached. Mike Brown might as well have worn a Cavalier-girl cheerleading outfit - that's basically what he was. The fact that he's won the same number of COTY awards as Phil Jackson, the same as Pop, the same as Larry Brown - and one more than Jerry Sloan is outrageous.

However, you are ASSUMING that lebron could integrate Pau into the game if he DID have Pau on his team.

That is the most ridiculous part of the whole 'is lebron as mighty as Magic or the Big-O' argument. NO!!!!!!! lebron has shown he cannot integrate his teammates, he cannot handle pressure situations, he cannot utilize the players around him and he cannot run set plays (if Mike Brown was even giving lebron plays to run).

My god KB Blitz, it seems that you pick the wrong end of all arguments. Please, please, please don't put lebrons 'accomplishments' in the realm of Kobe - or even DFish. Don't minimize his teammates either, becuase he's played with all-stars and former all-stars, all the while getting a team constructed around him, and was unable to win.

He will do fine when the path isn't a hard one, but if he meets resistance he melts.

Just don't say he's a winner. Until he WINS he can't be - and now he will only be a role-playing sidekick even if he does win!

GO LAKERS!!!!!

BTW I'm not saying he's not great, he's probably the finest athlete to ever play in the NBA. He's just no where near the category that most people slot him in prematurely. I guess we'll never see him lead a team to a title, so can we ever really consider him greater than the all-timers???

CyberCosmiX

I actually lean more toward KB Blitz in this discussion than I do you or LakerTom. LeBron single handedly took apart the Pistons in 2007 to get his team to the NBA Finals. He has had many memorable playoff performances. While I agree that he has not shown the heart of Kobe or Jordan given that his team had the best record in the NBA for the past two consecutive seasons and fell short, for me to say that this will be the case moving forward would be the equivalent of me saying that Andrew Bynum is doomed to an injury marred career and that he will never be the player we hoped he would be. It took Phil Jackson to make both Kobe and Jordan champions and now LeBron has not ONLY another superstar next to him, but he has the watchful eye of Pat Riley looking over them as well. And Riles knows just a little bit about what it takes to win championships. Yes, they haven't done anything yet, but LeBron, in particular, has something to prove.

"My god KB Blitz, it seems that you pick the wrong end of all arguments. Please, please, please don't put lebrons 'accomplishments' in the realm of Kobe - or even DFish. Don't minimize his teammates either, becuase he's played with all-stars and former all-stars, all the while getting a team constructed around him, and was unable to win."
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Oh so who was the All-Stars that Lebron played with?

Boozer-Left in Lebron's 2nd year
Big Z- Was on the decline of his career earning his last All-Star berth in Lebron's 2nd year.
Mo Williams-Didn't make All-Star team until his first year in Cleveland.
Shaq-Was 37 years old and having one fluke year in PHX (Ironically they failed to make the playoffs because more production was given to O'Neal than what he should have gotten).
Jamison-Was 33 years old and didn't get acclimated to the offense and was a liability against Garnett.

Had the Cavs made the trade to get Stoudemire and not Jamison then it would be more of a valid point. But those guys are the reason why the Cavaliers front officed FAILED to get Lebron any decent teammates to help him out. Are they comparable to Gasol? No not at their ages.

To dismiss him as a Nique clone (and that is even more of an insult because Nique was a very great player) is outright laughable especially considering he's only 25 years old.

@BLITZ… “To dismiss him as a Nique clone (and that is even more of an insult because Nique was a very great player) is outright laughable especially considering he's only 25 years old.” Nobody is saying that LeBron is a “Nique clone” or not a better player than Dominique. What we’re saying is that it is definitely possible that LeBron might end up winning multitudes of regular season awards and honors but never end up winning championships like Kobe Bryant has done. Thus, LeBron would be to Kobe like Dominique was to MJ.
~
LeBron now has a chance to silence his critics with the team he has in Miami so let’s see what he does before we jump aboard the ESPN bandwagon and declare him to be a great player. If he wins multiple rings for Miami, then he will have proven he is a great player. If he whiffs like Nique, especially since he now has a such a “great” team behind him, then he will have proven in my mind that he does not deserve to be spoken off in the same breath as proven great players like Kobe Bryant, Magic Johnson, and Michael Jordan.
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TOM