Image by Keith Allison via FlickrThose of us who watched on ESPN and sat through nearly a half hour of talking heads and commercials (profits allegedly going to the Boys and Girls Clubs. How sweet.) before we got to James' little announcement found it rather anticlimactic. See, the network had tipped us off hours before that James was going to South Florida to join Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh (who just fled the Toronto Raptors), creating the NBA's latest Big Three that could threaten to dominate pro basketball for years to come.
Imagine what would have happened if James had chosen to stay in Cleveland. We would have felt like we were ripped off, cheated, over our time being wasted like this. All those suitors vying for LeBron's services--the Heat, Chicago Bulls, New York Knicks, New Jersey Nets--and he chose to stay home? With all that fame and fortune awaiting him, why would he want to do that?
But back to our regular universe. The Heat will become an NBA superpower rivaling the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics (who curiously didn't get in on the bidding), while the Cavaliers will be reduced to the level of teams like the Minnesota Timberwolves, dependent on lottery picks and having a hard time selling good players on the benefits of playing in a city like Cleveland.
Regardless of how much money James and the other newly-signed free agents can wheedle out of their teams, storm clouds are on the horizon. The NBA's collective bargaining agreement expires after this coming season, and chances are real good that the owners might lock out the players. That happened over a decade ago, resulting in a shortened schedule. Future free agents might not be so fortunate.
Now that LeBron James has decided to move his kingdom south, we can have our lives back. That is, until Brett Favre decides whether or not he wants to play football this year.
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