Image via WikipediaIt finally happened. Lebron James left town, and Cleveland responded with an angry letter from the owner, jerseys set on fire, mural disappearances, and most notably, thousands upon thousands of broken hearts.In all fairness, James had every right to leave; after all, he was a free agent. Regardless, Lebron’s departure has clearly left the fans in Cleveland disappointed, and rightfully so. Aside from the fact that James is a superior player than his two new teammates down in Miami, there are other significant factors that differentiate Lebron’s departure from that of Chris Bosh, and Dwyane Wade’s initial contemplation of leaving Miami.
Here are a few reasons why the Cleveland Cavaliers and their fans deserved better from number 23:
1) Cleveland was a Consistent Championship Contender
In the past 4 seasons, the Cavaliers won 222 of a possible 328 regular season games. Their winning percentage of 67.7% over four years is the highest in the league. While the Miami Heat and Toronto Raptors either faced yearly first round eliminations, or failed to qualify for the playoffs altogether, LeBron and the Cavs not only made the playoffs every year, but were consistently considered favorites for the Eastern Conference.
2) Cleveland’s Commitment to Winning via Trades and Signings
Looking at the serious title contenders of the past few years, no team made as many impact player transactions as the Cavaliers. While the Lakers began last summer by essentially swapping Trevor Ariza for Ron Artest, and the Orlando Magic traded for Vince Carter after deciding Hedo Turkoglu wouldn’t be worth the money he would command, the Cleveland front office consistently showed their dedication to winning.
Speaking from a strictly numbers standpoint, the Cavs have either traded for or signed eight players that have been in the rotation since 2008. After the injury plagued season of that year, the Cavaliers swung a deal for Mo Williams, adding another knock down shooter who also happened to be the best point guard that LeBron had ever played with.
Then, months before the 2010 playoffs, the Cavaliers acquired another former All-Star in Antawn Jamison to fill the role of the coveted stretch 4.
In the end, none of these moves were enough to get the Cavs over the hump to win that elusive NBA ring. However, it was not due to a lack of effort from the Cleveland front office.
3) Cleveland Would Have Only Benefited as Time Went On
Now, while the Celtics showed their rejuvenation act in the playoffs this year, even the most die-hard Boston fan cannot deny that they have one, maybe two years left with their current roster before they fall back into mediocrity. Kevin Garnett is already a shell of his former self, Ray Allen’s flat jumper in the Finals revealed the effects of being a 35 shooting guard in the NBA, while Paul Pierce has also shown steady signs of decline. Rajon Rondo’s substantial improvement may keep the team from completely dropping to the bottom of the standings as the older guys phase out.
This means that had LeBron stayed with the Cavs, it would be very possible that as soon as this upcoming season, the only team that would pose a serious threat to them in their conference for the next few years would have been the Magic. LeBron and the Cavs would have to win a single hard fought series in the Eastern Conference to reach the Finals, and once there, it would be up to “King James” to lead his team to the promised land. In short, the Cavs window of opportunity would have been wide open had LeBron chose to stay, while the windows of those teams around him would have surely shut within the next year or two.
http://cavaliers.realgm.com/articles/132/20100713/why_lebron_should_have_stayed/
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