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It's me, your resident Cavs superfan who also happens to work at the Beacon Journal. I'm sure you've heard the LeBron news and wondered how dear old Lauren is doing.
Lauren's not doing so hot.
On June 30, LeBron James' agent Rich Paul reportedly informed the Los Angeles Lakers the Akron native wouldn't be returning to the team for a ninth season.
Initially that was music to my ears. The storybook ending to the hometown hero's legendary career was being written. Coming back to Cleveland to finish out his career with the Cavaliers seemed like a no-brainer, but then other teams came into the fold — Miami, Philadelphia, Milwaukee and even Golden State. I don't blame them for trying, but Cleveland made the most sense and we all know why.
In the end, though, The King chose Philadelphia. On July 24, James signed a two-year, $8 million deal with a player option to play for the Sixers, according to ESPN.
Cavs' European reunion: Cavs 2016 Championship team celebrate 10 years with wine, golf in Europe
I was honestly surprised. Shocked even. Last I saw, reports were heavily leaning toward Miami or Cleveland, so for him to pick Philly was out of left field.
I found out through a Teams message on my phone from an editor in Columbus. The subject was LeBron, asking us in Akron, do you guys have a story coming on him to Philly? It was 11:33 a.m. I had just come inside from moving my car so the plumber I was expecting had room to pull into the driveway.
"Wait, what?!" I exclaimed, to the audience of my dog, Dutton.
A few expletives followed.
I rushed to my room to grab my laptop from my bed. I knelt on the floor as I typed in my password to wake up my screen, clicking my Teams tab and then the SPORTS! chat that began to flood with messages. My body got hot, my heart pounded, my chest got tight and my hands started to tremble. It was really real.
And then it dawned on me. Philadelphia. The hometown of my soon-to-be-ex-husband who I'm sure was excited. Yeah, the same one I brought with me when I was among the lucky Cavs fans to go to Detroit for Game 7 against the Pistons because I'm just that nice. Maybe too nice. That honestly made the news even tougher for me to swallow.
Beat Detroit!: I was lucky enough to root Cavs on to Game 7 win in Detroit | Column
In exactly an hour we were meeting our lawyer to sign our dissolution papers. What timing, right? But that's been my life lately, an almost comical calamity. One of my good friends even joked, "[He] is not allowed to get LeBron in the divorce!!" when she got the news.
Then came the text messages.
"I'm sorry for your loss " "LeBron " "That stinks" "WTH," were among the ones that came in.
I can't even picture him in one of those ugly PHILA jerseys. Yuck!
There's something to be said about the spectacle that's been created around the long, drug-out process of James finally coming to a decision. I don't understand the point of it having go on so long. It almost rivals the "The Decision," but at least there was a date on that one. We knew when it was going to happen. This wait has been unbearable.
The days turned to weeks. It'd been so long that it had me wondering perhaps James hadn't actually made a decision yet.
After signing our papers Friday afternoon, Gabe and I briefly chatted and, of course, we touched on the LeBron news. He mentioned James had said something about "trust the process" during Fanatics Fest in New York last week and I said I didn't catch it. Everyone wanted to read into every little thing he said. I simply couldn't follow it all.
I went on to say I was stunned by the choice, admitting I didn't know the roster well besides Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey.
"And we just got Jaylen Brown," he said excitedly.
"Oh, dang, that's right," I said.
He went on about how good this and that was going to be and how James was going to do blah, blah, blah, and as politely as I could, I said, "Shut up."
He grinned, I mockingly grinned back and we went our separate ways.
Now that we know where he's going though, I decided to look up what James said at Fanatics Fest.
Not the best 'Decision': Using 'The Decision' as a marketing ploy a slap in the face to LeBron James fans | Opinion
During the live taping of his podcast, "Mind the Game" on July 16, James said, "I want to join a franchise that kind of shares the same model myself of practicing championship habits every day, but trusting the process more than anything. You trust the process of actually ... " and according to Yahoo Sports, he couldn't even finish what he was saying because the crowd went crazy over him saying "trust the process."
Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton, who was co-hosting the show with him, jumped in with his own reaction, but The King insisted it meant nothing at the time and that it wasn't an "Easter egg."
"I've been saying to 'trust the process' since I was drafted in 2003, even before [Joel] Embiid was born," James said.
For those who don't know, the "trust the process" mantra started in the Sixers locker room and was eventually adopted by fans during some rebuilding years that was most notably marked by then-general manager Sam Hinkie's pick of Joel Embiid in the 2014 NBA Draft. Embiid even went on to nickname himself "the Process."
All that said, I'm just so glad he didn't decide to stay out West and go to the Golden State Warriors.
After leading the Cavs to their only championship in 2016 and beating the Warriors in an iconic Finals rivalry, if James were to join Golden State, much less end his career there, I don't think I'd ever look at him the same way. That rivalry went on for years with back-to-back Finals matchups in 2015 before the Cavs victory and after in 2017 and 2018. Even the regular-season games brought playoff-level intensity from players and fans alike.
If James were to go to enemy territory, I think many, if not all, Cavs fans would feel a sense of betrayal. More so than choosing any other team to go to instead of returning to the Cavs. It would tarnish his legacy, ever so slightly.
Even former teammate Channing Frye said it'd be "gross" if he joined the Warriors.
Even though I'm not thrilled with the choice, I sure am glad that the wait is over. And the best part is we'll get at least two more seasons of LeBron James playing NBA basketball, as long as he stays healthy. Plus, it'll be so much easier for me to watch him now that he'd be back on the East coast. No more trying to stay up for 10 p.m. ET tipoffs.
Even though James said this would be his "last decision," he has said as long as he feel like he can still play, he would. Maybe after those two seasons, he might feel like he has another one in him and we get our storybook ending after all.
A single woman can dream, can't she?
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: LeBron's pick hurts more since he's going to ex's favorite team | Column
Continue reading...
Lauren's not doing so hot.
On June 30, LeBron James' agent Rich Paul reportedly informed the Los Angeles Lakers the Akron native wouldn't be returning to the team for a ninth season.
Initially that was music to my ears. The storybook ending to the hometown hero's legendary career was being written. Coming back to Cleveland to finish out his career with the Cavaliers seemed like a no-brainer, but then other teams came into the fold — Miami, Philadelphia, Milwaukee and even Golden State. I don't blame them for trying, but Cleveland made the most sense and we all know why.
In the end, though, The King chose Philadelphia. On July 24, James signed a two-year, $8 million deal with a player option to play for the Sixers, according to ESPN.
Cavs' European reunion: Cavs 2016 Championship team celebrate 10 years with wine, golf in Europe
I was honestly surprised. Shocked even. Last I saw, reports were heavily leaning toward Miami or Cleveland, so for him to pick Philly was out of left field.
I found out through a Teams message on my phone from an editor in Columbus. The subject was LeBron, asking us in Akron, do you guys have a story coming on him to Philly? It was 11:33 a.m. I had just come inside from moving my car so the plumber I was expecting had room to pull into the driveway.
"Wait, what?!" I exclaimed, to the audience of my dog, Dutton.
A few expletives followed.
You must be registered for see images
I rushed to my room to grab my laptop from my bed. I knelt on the floor as I typed in my password to wake up my screen, clicking my Teams tab and then the SPORTS! chat that began to flood with messages. My body got hot, my heart pounded, my chest got tight and my hands started to tremble. It was really real.
And then it dawned on me. Philadelphia. The hometown of my soon-to-be-ex-husband who I'm sure was excited. Yeah, the same one I brought with me when I was among the lucky Cavs fans to go to Detroit for Game 7 against the Pistons because I'm just that nice. Maybe too nice. That honestly made the news even tougher for me to swallow.
Beat Detroit!: I was lucky enough to root Cavs on to Game 7 win in Detroit | Column
In exactly an hour we were meeting our lawyer to sign our dissolution papers. What timing, right? But that's been my life lately, an almost comical calamity. One of my good friends even joked, "[He] is not allowed to get LeBron in the divorce!!" when she got the news.
Then came the text messages.
"I'm sorry for your loss " "LeBron " "That stinks" "WTH," were among the ones that came in.
I can't even picture him in one of those ugly PHILA jerseys. Yuck!
Trust The Process?
There's something to be said about the spectacle that's been created around the long, drug-out process of James finally coming to a decision. I don't understand the point of it having go on so long. It almost rivals the "The Decision," but at least there was a date on that one. We knew when it was going to happen. This wait has been unbearable.
The days turned to weeks. It'd been so long that it had me wondering perhaps James hadn't actually made a decision yet.
After signing our papers Friday afternoon, Gabe and I briefly chatted and, of course, we touched on the LeBron news. He mentioned James had said something about "trust the process" during Fanatics Fest in New York last week and I said I didn't catch it. Everyone wanted to read into every little thing he said. I simply couldn't follow it all.
I went on to say I was stunned by the choice, admitting I didn't know the roster well besides Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey.
"And we just got Jaylen Brown," he said excitedly.
"Oh, dang, that's right," I said.
He went on about how good this and that was going to be and how James was going to do blah, blah, blah, and as politely as I could, I said, "Shut up."
He grinned, I mockingly grinned back and we went our separate ways.
Now that we know where he's going though, I decided to look up what James said at Fanatics Fest.
Not the best 'Decision': Using 'The Decision' as a marketing ploy a slap in the face to LeBron James fans | Opinion
You must be registered for see images
During the live taping of his podcast, "Mind the Game" on July 16, James said, "I want to join a franchise that kind of shares the same model myself of practicing championship habits every day, but trusting the process more than anything. You trust the process of actually ... " and according to Yahoo Sports, he couldn't even finish what he was saying because the crowd went crazy over him saying "trust the process."
Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton, who was co-hosting the show with him, jumped in with his own reaction, but The King insisted it meant nothing at the time and that it wasn't an "Easter egg."
"I've been saying to 'trust the process' since I was drafted in 2003, even before [Joel] Embiid was born," James said.
For those who don't know, the "trust the process" mantra started in the Sixers locker room and was eventually adopted by fans during some rebuilding years that was most notably marked by then-general manager Sam Hinkie's pick of Joel Embiid in the 2014 NBA Draft. Embiid even went on to nickname himself "the Process."
I'm just glad it's not Golden State
All that said, I'm just so glad he didn't decide to stay out West and go to the Golden State Warriors.
After leading the Cavs to their only championship in 2016 and beating the Warriors in an iconic Finals rivalry, if James were to join Golden State, much less end his career there, I don't think I'd ever look at him the same way. That rivalry went on for years with back-to-back Finals matchups in 2015 before the Cavs victory and after in 2017 and 2018. Even the regular-season games brought playoff-level intensity from players and fans alike.
You must be registered for see images
If James were to go to enemy territory, I think many, if not all, Cavs fans would feel a sense of betrayal. More so than choosing any other team to go to instead of returning to the Cavs. It would tarnish his legacy, ever so slightly.
Even former teammate Channing Frye said it'd be "gross" if he joined the Warriors.
It is what it is
Even though I'm not thrilled with the choice, I sure am glad that the wait is over. And the best part is we'll get at least two more seasons of LeBron James playing NBA basketball, as long as he stays healthy. Plus, it'll be so much easier for me to watch him now that he'd be back on the East coast. No more trying to stay up for 10 p.m. ET tipoffs.
Even though James said this would be his "last decision," he has said as long as he feel like he can still play, he would. Maybe after those two seasons, he might feel like he has another one in him and we get our storybook ending after all.
A single woman can dream, can't she?
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: LeBron's pick hurts more since he's going to ex's favorite team | Column
Continue reading...
