Black Sports: Lebron James is Stunned After Loss
Head down and shoulders slumped,LeBron James(notes) headed off the court as the Orlando Magicstreamers shot off above him.
Dwight Howard(notes) was hugging Hedo Turkoglu(notes), dreams of Beating L.A. dancing in their heads. James wasn’t bothering to stick around to shake hands, offer congratulations or pretend there was a bright side to the Magic ousting his Cleveland Cavaliers from the East finals with a 103-90 victory in Game 6.
James was off the floor before the confetti could hit his shoulders.
He later dressed in silence in a corner of the locker room then put on some gold, oversized headphones and headed for the door. Normally one of the last to leave, he was now one of the first. With anger and frustration evident in each step, he charged through the back halls of Amway Arena without greeting anyone, got on the team bus and soon was off to the airport.
There was no looking for his mother, Gloria. There was no talking with Nike executives. And forget addressing fans and media – Mo Williams(notes) was left to answer for the defeat.
LeBron was gone. The King was silent.
The fallout from this defeat will echo loudly all summer, though, the pressure mounting on Cavs general manager Danny Ferry.
This is not a stunning defeat to anyone outside of the moment. I compared Lebron’s situation to Michael Jordan’s rise and it’s very close. Jordan needed Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman before he won a championship. It takes 3 to make a thing go right. Last year, Boston picked up Kevin Garnett. Cleveland needs one more big name. Verasho is no Dennis Rodman except for the wild hair. Who is The King’s Pippen?