LeBron James, your Decision to leave Dan Gilbert's franchise was an inspired one. You are a thinker and you made the right Decision for your career in putting Gilbert's incompetently run plantation in your rearview mirror after seven seasons. And as you often do, you accomplished more than one thing with one action. In leaving in 2010 you exposed Dan Gilbert as the hateful fool he is. Gilbert's comic sans bile full of hate directed at you was directed indirectly at all Black players in the NBA, and at all of Gilbert's employees. You have had four coaches and four general managers in Cleveland under Gilbert, not one of the latter category given a renewed contract. The Reverend Jesse Jackson was right: Gilbert treated you as a runaway slave.
In your decision to go back to Gilbert's plantation, uncharacteristically, you only saw one thing: bringing a championship to Cleveland and its (gag) "long-suffering" fans. The hatred shown you by Mistakers, you remember how touchy it was; no, let's speak truth: your first time back as a member of the Miami "Heat" was dangerous, Mr. James, dangerous. Gilbert's hate continued after you left. You had exposed him, sir, exposed him.
But you went back. You went back because the hatred of northeast Ohio bothered you. Made you feel that you had done something wrong. And so the prodigal slave returned, to gain redemption. You achieved that. You brought a championship to Lake Mistake, and the fans adored you once again. Congratulations.
You did not intend to but you did something more. You redeemed Dan Gilbert. You, so socially aware, treated like a runaway slave, went back to your former plantation and your former slave master. You won a championship for Dan Gilbert's franchise, sir, Dan Gilbert's!
In going home you redeemed Dan Gilbert's treatment of you, and, as tonight, his other slaves. "See, he came back!" In winning Dan Gilbert a championship after just one year you validated the basketball judgment of an incompetent. "I, Dan Gilbert, won a championship."
You will leave Cleveland again, again justifiably. This time you will leave behind a legacy of redeeming Dan Gilbert's irredeemable soul. He is a bad man, Mr. James. You made a bad man look good. Yours is a shameful legacy, sir, shameful.
In your decision to go back to Gilbert's plantation, uncharacteristically, you only saw one thing: bringing a championship to Cleveland and its (gag) "long-suffering" fans. The hatred shown you by Mistakers, you remember how touchy it was; no, let's speak truth: your first time back as a member of the Miami "Heat" was dangerous, Mr. James, dangerous. Gilbert's hate continued after you left. You had exposed him, sir, exposed him.
But you went back. You went back because the hatred of northeast Ohio bothered you. Made you feel that you had done something wrong. And so the prodigal slave returned, to gain redemption. You achieved that. You brought a championship to Lake Mistake, and the fans adored you once again. Congratulations.
You did not intend to but you did something more. You redeemed Dan Gilbert. You, so socially aware, treated like a runaway slave, went back to your former plantation and your former slave master. You won a championship for Dan Gilbert's franchise, sir, Dan Gilbert's!
In going home you redeemed Dan Gilbert's treatment of you, and, as tonight, his other slaves. "See, he came back!" In winning Dan Gilbert a championship after just one year you validated the basketball judgment of an incompetent. "I, Dan Gilbert, won a championship."
You will leave Cleveland again, again justifiably. This time you will leave behind a legacy of redeeming Dan Gilbert's irredeemable soul. He is a bad man, Mr. James. You made a bad man look good. Yours is a shameful legacy, sir, shameful.
