LeBron Had It Right About the Hypocrisy of "Sportsmanship"

by BrownsCavaliersIndiansForev on Jul 20, 2009 5:24 AM CDT Comment 44 comments

Now that the uproar over the playoffs has subsided a bit, and all of the posters and media types, who are jealous of all the attention showered on LeBron James, have gotten their cheap shots, I just want to say that I agree with LeBron.

It is extremely hypocritical to play the "sportsmanship" card after a series is over when, during the series, every other sort of unsportsmanlike conduct is tolerated, even encouraged, in the name of "winning at any cost."

Where was the talk of "sportsmanship" when vicious elbows were flying, noses were broken and mouths bloodied, and violence escalated to the point of a street fight or a mugging? Sure, basketball has become a tough, physical game. But when the heat of battle continuously pushes players over the line into flagrant fouls, repeated technicals, and unnecessary violence, then I say LeBron is right to simply depart at the end of the series.

If sportsmanship is completely thrown out the door during a series, why is it so important to suddenly bring it back at the end? LeBron sends a much more significant message: 1) All is NOT forgiven and 2) We will be back next year

This is a Fan-Created Comment on FearTheSword.com. The opinion here is not necessarily shared by the editorial staff at FearTheSword

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where was the outcry when the entire national league all-star team left the field without so much as a single handshake for the victorious american league all stars? in an exhibition game.

by DontCallMeJoey on Jul 20, 2009 12:01 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

they don't do it in baseball, period

handshakes post game in baseball is an extreme rarity. the all star game was not an individual occurrence.

nice try to defend your boy tho.

"The problem actually is that PER is a extra-long, double high wagon load of horse crap." - timbo (7/3/09)

by tandur on Jul 20, 2009 1:00 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

...

Naww no nice try on defending LeBron. He successfully did defend him. All personal feelings aside, when u dont like someone you do everything you can to ignore the good things and look for all the bad things that person does or look for them to mess up and then you try to involve others so they feel the same way u do untill that person is shredded. Well LeBron can handle it so to the media and all LeBron haters, nice try and ill see you during the next bullshit news report on LeBron.

by siejecy on Jul 20, 2009 1:35 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

i admire your attempts to make stuff up and pass it off as fact.

by DontCallMeJoey on Jul 20, 2009 2:32 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

really?

point out the last time you saw two MLB teams shake hands after the game.

I’ll give you a tip: 2004, St. Louis Cardinals vs. Los Angeles Dodgers.

"The problem actually is that PER is a extra-long, double high wagon load of horse crap." - timbo (7/3/09)

by tandur on Jul 20, 2009 4:33 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Let me ask you something — do you come to this site every day to see if anyone has posted something about LeBron so you can bash him some more? You’ve never one discussed another topic on this site, but if there’s a post about something LeBron might have done wrong then you’re making comments all over the place, letting us all know that LeBron is a terrible person and we’re all “blinded by homerism” because we’re not bashing him as much as you are. Don’t you have anything better to do?

We all know you’re a Lakers fan and we don’t care about your biased opinion. Why don’t you stick to bashing LeBron on the Lakers site with other Lakers fans instead of bothering us all the time.

by Buckeye Brad on Jul 20, 2009 5:04 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

or you could close comments on this thread

seems to work.

"The problem actually is that PER is a extra-long, double high wagon load of horse crap." - timbo (7/3/09)

by tandur on Jul 20, 2009 11:38 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

….OR we could just have your posting priveldges revoked as well on the site. That would work a little better in fact since you have not contributed one morsel of positive discussion on the site.

I personally would have liked to see him congratulate the Magic, but am not offended that he did not. I don’t recall Jordan walking over to the Pistons team after the Jordan Rules series in the late 80s. They may have, but I don’t recall it.

In case you hadn’t noticed, most of what is discussed on this site is NOT a LeBron lovefest. We criticize the Cavs (including LeBron), but in regards to basketball issues, not perceived media chum induced criticism.

Please take your multi-colored basketball home with you so you can go dunk on your 8 foot hoop in your driveway and make yourself feel self important again.

by talonk on Jul 21, 2009 12:49 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Eight feet is giving him a lot of credit

Ride on ye fearsome Horsemen of the Basketball Apocalypse. We got this.

by Turkmenbashi on Jul 21, 2009 7:18 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

If you can’t dunk on 8, you have some big athleticism issues

by Roger Dorn on Jul 21, 2009 10:27 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Man, you are so totally right….LeBron is just terrible in every sense of the word. Terrible at basketball, a terrible person…I don’t even know why I have been rooting for that guy.

What team do you like, maybe I can become a fan of them?

by rufio on Jul 21, 2009 1:21 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Sportsmanship has its place and time … its called Little League, High School and College. I have nothing wrong with players not shaking the hands of their opponents. I’ve played many sports and the only reason after a loss I shook hands most of the time was because I had to. People put way too much emphasis on being good sports. Its a competition just like everything else in life. You don’t shake the hand of the guy who got the job instead of you do you? Lets get over, as a society, acting like we actually care about being nice to one another.

by jsneides on Jul 20, 2009 1:18 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

What "sins" did LeBron comitt?

He walked off the court, didn’t shake hands with any of the Magic players and did not show up for the press conference. BFD!

Can you even imagine the number of insults and taunts being hurled at him by Magic fans during that series? Yet, he did not respond in kind and he’s a bad sport?. He simply removed himself from their collective orgazim. Where is it written that the vanquished must seek out the victors to shake their hands while they are wild in celebration? Sportmanship has a great deal more to it than just if you shake someone’s hand or not.

Let the haters hate him but they are the true “bad sports”. Hypocrites, like the Wizards fans who cry that he travels and gets superstar touch fouls when he drives to the hoop, then call him a “crybaby” when he winces at getting smacked in the face or simply says to a reporter that the tactics of fouling him hard aren’t working. Are they the “good” sports?

Case in point, Dwight Howard. This guy was on the verge of being suspended for a game he had so many T’s and he did have to sit out a game in the Philly series for elbow throwing to the head of an opponent. Yet, it is spun that he is one of the series heros and LeBron is the “poor sport”?

How many T’s did LeBron get this season? I don’t know but I’d think it was very few compared to the minutes he played. When has LeBron ever showed up an opponent like DeShawn Stevenson or a teammate?

This kind of crap is to be expected when you are the best all around basketball player on the earth. We are the ones that must grow a thicker skin but I am with you and will defend LeBron his actions.

So I told her," I'll be nicer if you try to be smarter!'..That was a mistake.

by Juannieboy on Jul 20, 2009 4:02 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

you’re right, sportsmanship does have much more to it than shaking hands. it involves being a respectful winner and a dignified loser, and staying classy no matter how many teams beat him or how many drunken fans shout insults at him.

Andray Blatche > Lebron James

by blatcheallstar09 on Jul 21, 2009 9:15 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

This is such a dead topic — why are we discussing it again? This just gives a reason for all the LeBron bashers to come here and rip him again. Can we please stop this nonsense and stick to discussing real basketball news.

by Buckeye Brad on Jul 20, 2009 5:06 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

I am not sure why we are disccussing this again Brad.

Most of the adults have moved on but my sixth grader and his buddies have been talking about this on and off now since the playoffs ended. He reads this site and so do his friends so I think its important to respond even trying as it is.

So I told her," I'll be nicer if you try to be smarter!'..That was a mistake.

by Juannieboy on Jul 20, 2009 7:22 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

A fake handshake and an insincere congratulations is worse than none at all.

by rufio on Jul 21, 2009 1:23 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

If you got Bitch slapped the way he did

Would you have shaken hands?

Give the guy a break. His mind was already in Kobe Finals Mode when Dwight SAID “NO”.

most wins for REGULAR season and 8-0 to start playoffs.

Sorry None of us can say how we would react when something we thought was forgone conclusion BLOWS UP IN YOUR FACE.

Especially someone with LeBrons Sense of Entitlement….

Dwight Vs. LeBron is going to be a treat for the next 8-10…

Some people swear they down as can be
Turns out those same Homies Sit down to pee

by I blocked Patrick Chewing on Jul 21, 2009 7:54 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Despite Lebron’s best efforts, the CAVALIERS lost. Let’s not forget who the best player in the series was

by Roger Dorn on Jul 21, 2009 10:28 AM CDT up reply actions 1 recs

How exactly does LeBron have a “sense of entitlement”? He’s worked hard for everything he has achieved. Of course he was born with fantastic athletic abilities, but many people others waste those abilities because they don’t work hard. LeBron hasn’t been handed anything in his life; he’s earned it through his abilities and determination. So how exactly do you back up that statement?

by Buckeye Brad on Jul 21, 2009 11:22 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

95% of the people who watched the Magic Cavs

Thought the Cavs would win in a ROMP. 8-0 to start the playoffs. I can not even begin to know the rage LeBron must have felt. I am not saying I would have shaken hands or saying he was wrong for not doing so, But You and I both know LeBron expected to Crush the Magic like the Hawks and Pistons before them(again 95% of the world gave the Magic No chance). When things Went horribly wrong he acted as any human would. With Emotion…

Sense of entitlement was a bad choice of words, I retract them to maintain the integrity of this blog.

Some people swear they down as can be
Turns out those same Homies Sit down to pee

by I blocked Patrick Chewing on Jul 21, 2009 1:56 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

You’re right, most people did think the Cavs would beat the Magic (and they should have). The Cavs knew the Magic would give them a much tougher fight than the Hawks or Pistons and I don’t think they were taking the series for granted, but I know they all expected to win (as most athletes do). I cannot begin to imagine how crushing that defeat was to LeBron (and the other Cavs players) and he did show his frustration. It’s all part of being human, as you said.

Thank you for retracting that statement.

by Buckeye Brad on Jul 21, 2009 3:00 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

"and they should have"

the first sign of a fan who is bitter.

by Boney on Jul 21, 2009 4:44 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

No, the Cavs were better during the regular season. There was every reason to make the Cavs the favorites. Not saying the Magic couldn’t win, but they certainly were the underdogs. They just came out of a tough series with the Celtics while the Cavs were coming off a sweep. I don’t know how you could possibly disagree with the fact that the Cavs should have been the favorites in the series.

by Buckeye Brad on Jul 21, 2009 6:20 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Just go by the Vegas line. They are experts. The Cavs were favored.

by Roger Dorn on Jul 21, 2009 9:38 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I really never gave the Cavs a vote of confidence

in a 7-game series with the Magic. When you lose 8 of 11 regular season games to a team over a 4 yr stretch it says something. I realize most people throw out the reg season come playoff time but it is an indicator to a degree…not always but in this case it was and simply because of the dominance of Orlando over Cleveland in that span. Now lets throw out the window the bad defensive assignments of MIke Brown and the horrible player rotations.(i.e. lebron on alston) (west 43min pg) etc Lets throw out the mo touch shot(Gm 1) and the West almost re-bound even the Lebron corner runner 3 miss at the buzzer in (GM 4). Lets even throw out the Finals result of 07 when Cavs swept Spurs 2-0 in the reg season and then got swept or how Orlando swept LA 2-0 in reg season and got beat 4-1. The facts are these… Orlando as a team was better than the Cavs but didn’t always play to their potential. Hence the Finals. Could the Cavs have won that series with the personnel they had…ABSOLUTELY. Should they have won..NO Magic were clearly better and deserved to advance. Were the Magic really that big of a nightmare matchup for the Cavs..No not really… The only glaring weakness was the inability to cover Howard 1 on1 even though he is not going to beat you by himself yet all the attention we gave him made it possible. And if I recall he wasn’’t the one hitting clutch 3’s late in games with seconds left to win it. Yet for some reason our coaching staff didn’t realize this.
Would the Cavs have clobbered Boston and given LA a better fight in the finals had they advanced…ABSOLUTELY.(Orlando’s inconsistent play throughout killed them) Cavs probably would have taken the crown in seven considering Bynum is well…Bynum and Gasol and Odom even though in theory more talented aren’t the perimeter threats that Lewis & Turkoglu are. But the past is the past. The Cavs have 3x over improved a 66 plus win team. Think about that…

Oh and Yes Lebron should have congratulated the Magic on their victory. Does it matter…NO Should it matter, from an image standpoint Yes. In reality, No.
Do I care either way…Hell NO! Thanks for listening

by Cavs4 life on Jul 22, 2009 12:27 AM CDT reply actions 1 recs

When you lose 8 of 11 regular season games to a team over a 4 yr stretch it says something.

actually, it says nothing. you do realize how much rosters turn over in a 4-year period, right?

Orlando as a team was better than the Cavs but didn’t always play to their potential.

this just doesn’t make any sense. orlando was better than the cavs for the 6 games that counted most, clearly, but i have no idea how you say, unequivocally, the magic were better than the cavs—a team that won 7 more games over the course of 82 regular season contests.

by DontCallMeJoey on Jul 22, 2009 11:52 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

You really want to start the Oklahoma got beat by Texas but Oklahoma Beat Texas Tech who Beat Texas train?

They played a 7 game series. The Magic won. I can and only have to say whatever everyone in the world knew after that series.

Magic>Cavs.

This was a 7 game series. I would give you a fluke out if it was one and done, but even then Magic won the 1st game at the Q.

Can we agree that 90% of the time the Better team wins a 7 game series?

5-12 in the last 4 years speaks volumes.

LeBron has trouble with the Dwight Howards Magic.

But you are right 7 more regular season wins speaks volumes more than a head to head matchup with a trip to the finals at stake…

Some people swear they down as can be
Turns out those same Homies Sit down to pee

by I blocked Patrick Chewing on Jul 23, 2009 8:36 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Can we agree that 90% of the time the Better team wins a 7 game series?

Uhh, no. Do you have data to back up this fact or are you just pulling that number out of your rear? I’m sorry, but 90% is way too high.

5-12 in the last 4 years speaks volumes

That’s simply not true. Go look at the Cavs and Magic rosters from 4 years ago and compare them to now (before the offseason). Both teams are much different, so whatever happened four years ago has very little bearing to what happened this year. You’re only saying this because your team won and you’re looking for reasons to back up the fact that you knew the Magic were better all along.

Listen, the Magic won and should be congratulated for it. They played better in the series and deserved to win. But you don’t need to go back and pretend that they were the better team in the regular season and were the favorites in the series. Can’t you just be happy that your team won?

by Buckeye Brad on Jul 23, 2009 9:48 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Instances in which you believed that the better team didn’t win in a 7 game series?

by shoothoop on Jul 28, 2009 5:13 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

The Cavs have 3x over improved a 66 plus win team. Think about that…

That’s 198 wins next year, folks! Easily doable.

by rufio on Jul 22, 2009 12:06 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

The Cavs have 3x over improved a 66 plus win team. Think about that…

meaning they have added 3 players who will have a positive impact on a team that won 66 games and lost none barring a match offer from the Heat and accepting the fact that contributions from wallace and pavlovic did not have a direct impact on wether or not they would have been victorious in said games w/o either.

And just to throw this out there bcuz so many are upset at AV’s contract. Varejao’s non stat reflecting game impact i.e. loose balls, charges taken, T-ups forced leading to extra possesions t.o’s forced and second shot attempts through o-bounds was huge in ALOT of those games. Granted I do agree he is ovrpaid due to alot of his limitations offensively but make no mistake AV is a huge reason the cavs won so many gmes last yr. I am glad he is back no matter the price tag.
If he can add some muscle mass and upper body strength to guard the big 5’s and still maintain the defensive quickness and speed he has. AV will be a very coveted big man in yrs to come and i’m glad we got him. He has gotten better at least from what i’ve seen every yr and this yr will be no different. I’m not a huge fan of his but i appreciate what he brings to the cavs and his chemistry with lebron from playing with him for 4 yrs. im done on tht.

On another rant…i really hope this “dunk-gate” thing goes away soon. Its annoying and is really stupid. And as dumb as it was to cover up bcuz its not even great by any stretch of the word its even more pathetic for the media to keep shoveling this crap in our face. It happened its over and no one except lebron haters care. give it up please. I like to read something worthwhile or at least interesting. I didn’t even care when CEO john rogers beat jordan in a pickup game…hell didn’t even watch the video of it till this lebron crap surfaced and all he did was get dunked on when he was barely even paying attention and just jumped up to contest cause the dude was comin and he was there.

by Cavs4 life on Jul 23, 2009 12:28 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Good point about Howard, Cavs4life

“The only glaring weakness was the inability to cover Howard 1 on1”

Do you think the Cavaliers have addressed that issue with the addition of Shaq?

Shaq may not be able to play full steam for every game all season long but, if they can conserve him for the playoffs, I’ll put my money on Shaq against Howard any day, even with the youth advantage that Howard has…

by BrownsCavaliersIndiansForev on Jul 22, 2009 5:57 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Yes the cavs had problems with dwight howard, but i refuse to believe that was the main reason we lost the series. Mike Brown had a bad defensive strategy all around. And also when a team shoots roughly 120 3’s in a series and hits 50% of them it makes them really hard to beat. Our team now is more capable of stopping a team from getting those open looks, so hopefully Mike Brown can come up with a more successful defensive strategy.

by BornInThePound on Jul 23, 2009 2:28 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

actually all of those unsportsmanlike things mentioned in the article are reasons FOR the handshake at the end of games. sports are war and hunting tempered by morality. the handshake symbolizes “leaving it on the field”, it restricts all of that aggression to the physical space and time of the game. its what allows people to go at each other like animals and then get along afterwards.

as someone pointed out, not shaking hands is like saying, I don’t forgive you. that’s trouble in the long run. if lebron wants to reduce unsportsmanlike play during games, he shouldn’t make his point by being unsportsmanlike himself, he should find a constructive way to do it.

by appletree on Jul 25, 2009 9:38 AM CDT reply actions 2 recs

+100

We didn't lose the games, we just ran out of time -- Bobby Layne

by detpistons3 on Jul 25, 2009 9:15 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

-100

Baseball is God's sport! All Truth Goes Through Three Stages 1.It is ridiculed 2.It is violently opposed 3.Finally, it is accepted as self-evident. kinesiologist
Baseball’s biggest busts Andy Marte

by E5 on Jul 29, 2009 9:33 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

+101 I win

We didn't lose the games, we just ran out of time -- Bobby Layne

by detpistons3 on Jul 31, 2009 11:25 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

-10(10100)

Baseball is God's sport! All Truth Goes Through Three Stages 1.It is ridiculed 2.It is violently opposed 3.Finally, it is accepted as self-evident. kinesiologist
Baseball’s biggest busts Andy Marte

by E5 on Jul 31, 2009 1:07 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

+∞

We didn't lose the games, we just ran out of time -- Bobby Layne

by detpistons3 on Jul 31, 2009 1:46 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

fullishness

lets face it Lebron doesn’t care about anyone but himself but that doesn’t matter as long as he wins titles like your boy Isiah “I destroy everything” Thomas did.

Baseball is God's sport! All Truth Goes Through Three Stages 1.It is ridiculed 2.It is violently opposed 3.Finally, it is accepted as self-evident. kinesiologist
Baseball’s biggest busts Andy Marte
1 All Star for 3 bullpen arms. Awful

by E5 on Jul 31, 2009 3:10 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I acknowledge

The actions the entire Detroit team (save for Joe Dumars, that guy is on another level of class), was pretty dispicable, and they were ridiculed heavily for it, just as Lebron is now. The handshake is a sacred part of sports, it displays respect and humility. Not shaking an opponents hand is like spitting in their face.

We didn't lose the games, we just ran out of time -- Bobby Layne

by detpistons3 on Jul 31, 2009 9:52 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I agree

but Lebron has the right to spit in their face because he did everything for the Cavs and no one on his team helped him out at all.

# # 100 Oppie Says:
July 31st, 2009 at 4:40 pm

I’m DONE!!! I don’t think words can express my anger, I’m officially done with this team. They traded one of the few guys I still liked and one of the few guys that even cared about team anymore. I thank God that I just moved to N.C. so I don’t have to watch the Indians b/c I would rather watch a 24 hour marathon of Jon & Kate Plus 8 than watch this pathetic excuse for a team.

We really have turned into the team from Major League except our owner isn’t a hot cougar, it’s an old, wrinkly man who has similar characteristics to Ebeneezer Scrooge.

by E5 on Jul 31, 2009 10:08 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs