58476521 reasons why LeBron won't leave Cleveland

For my first ever blog post, I felt like it was appropriate for me to write about something that has been bothering me for awhile. Usually I am not one to let an issue burn inside of me for too long. In fact, the last time I let something get to me for more than a month was in junior high when, like any teenage girl, everything bothered me. Maybe it's because this issue is constantly pushed in my face day after day when I sign onto twitter or read a sports column. Or maybe it's just because the concept of it is so ridiculous that I feel like I need to join what seems to be the minority of media figures that has spoken up for the city of Cleveland and its fans. Whatever it may be, I feel with all of my heart and soul that LeBron James is not going anywhere. The only reason why people think he would is because the New York media and its fans feel that since Cleveland is dying and New York probably never will, the only way he can become a bigger icon is by moving to the Big Apple.

I have an entire list of reasons why this just isn't going to happen and also why I can't wait until July 1st when all of the cocky New Yorkers can stick their feet in their mouths when they finally don't get their way.

1. Championship or no championship, everything The King has is in Cleveland.
Whether or the not Cavs bring home a trophy (which I pray they do), LeBron's entire life is in Cleveland. His family might be from Akron but it's only a 45 minute drive down I-77. His friends are his business partners. Moving to New York means they will have to move with him. I know, he can afford it, but there is no place like home. He also has a girlfriend and two children, who I'm sure are just fine where they are.

2. Championship or no championship, James understands what his departure would do to his fans.
It doesn't matter whether or not he gets his ring this season. Ok, wait, let me rephrase that, it DOES matter. Cleveland fans have not seen one of their teams win a major title since 1964 when the Browns won the Football National Championship. However, because this was before the Super Bowl became the granddaddy of all gridiron games, the only people that find this relevant are Cleveland fans. Winning this year means fans can finally have something to smile about after constant heartbreak. But even if the Cavs finally do pull it off, it would become irrelevant if LeBron decided to walk away from the team that finally created a sigh of relief in northeastern Ohio. He knows this. He's known this all his life. Which is why he knows that walking away would be a slap in the face to his fans and create a domino effect for the rest of his career. I can see it now: LeBron leaves, loses most of his true fan base, and is greeted at Grand Central by a bunch of fair weather fans that probably know nothing about his full career and just want to feel cool wearing his jersey. This brings me to my number three:

3. LeBron is a born leader
There's just no way someone who is such a positive asset to the NBA would sell out his team because people say he should. Everyone knows how he is with his teammates, he's a leader, not a conformist. How could "anyone from New York that is a true LeBron fan" (lol) not realize this? If I was James, I would be loving this right now, watching everyone debate over my future while I just go out there and have a good time on the court. He's not worried about what people say because he doesn't care. He knows what he wants and that's not anything that isn't Wine and Gold.

4. Championship or no championship, LeBron knows what leaving would do to the city of Cleveland.
It's no secret, Cleveland is not exactly the most prosperous city in the US these days. My mother, who now lives in Parma, the largest suburb of Cleveland, is a huge history buff and likes to spend time at the library looking up random facts. When I took her out to lunch a few months back, she decided to enlighten me with the fact that in 1960, Cleveland was the 8th largest city in the US. Now, it ranks at number 40 and that number will probably continue rise. Though the city and its suburbs are continuously hit with economic downturn, one thing that keeps it thriving are its sports teams. No matter how bad any of them are, Cleveland fans are the most diehard fans in the entire nation. No other city has witnessed ALL of its teams fall short season after season. Yet, they always bounce back and say "There's always next year". But if LeBron leaves us now, especially with a ring, it might take a lot to get back up. This isn't just blowing the World Series twice in one decade or having the owners of a franchise trade away your best pitchers only to have them match up in a World Series. This is worse. It's worse than having your already unstable football team shipped off and then four years later getting an even worse team than you had before. I know, this brings up bad memories and I know people will argue that I'm wrong, but this is most definitely worse: this is a player leaving on HIS OWN terms, not anyone else's. And that will be the final jab to the artery before the city goes into asystole. LeBron is aware of the devestation this area has faced and being the man that he is, will not let it get any worse.

5. Despite its disparity, Cleveland is actually not a bad city and Lebron knows it.
I follow Josh Cribbs on Twitter. He often tweets about the fun he's having out on the town with James. Cleveland is a fun place. I am from Sandusky which is an hour west and also an hour east of Toledo and I would much rather go to Cleveland than the armpit of America. It smells better, the shopping is better, and there are way less Michigan fans to deal with. It makes me sad that people hate on Cleveland so easily, especially people that have maybe only been there once and probably didn't get to see all the good things the city has to offer. After getting a minor in criminology, I have learned a thing or two about why metropolitan areas can get a bad rep. The main reason is that when a city is predominantly based on one kind of industry, it has a greater chance of failure than one that hosts a mix of manufactured products and corporate services. Since Cleveland was more a industrial city than a service-oriented, many of its businesses disappeared, leaving what were once cultural hubs nothing more than "the parts of town you do not go to at night". But though there are some rough parts due to the end of the industrial era, there aren't nearly as many as there are in New York and it's definitely cleaner than New Jersey (at least that's what I hear). I have never been to New York, either, but from the stories from my friends and the billions of times I've heard "Empire State of Mind", I have a pretty good picture. I don't want to hate on the city and I would love to visit soon. If I like it, I wouldn't even mind moving there, not because I think it's better than anywhere else in the world, but because I am young and the time is now to experience things outside of my comfort zone. It would be kind of cool to tell my future children that I lived there for a bit, as it would if I lived in any other iconic city. And, I am not the decade' best athlete, I am a writer and the best jobs are not in Ohio. It breaks my heart to say it but it's true. I've been looking for the last year. LeBron does not need to live and play in the biggest US metropolis to capitalize on his wealth. Everything he needs and wants is in his own back yard, no resume or cover letter necessary.

6. LeBron is an amazing, talented athlete not a money-hungry business goon
This is a quote that I found on Cleveland.com today from Steve Rosner, a so-called marketing expert, about why LeBron would benefit from going to New York:

"If he would come to either the Nets or the Knicks the business opportunities for him to continue to grow his brand would be much greater in a metropolitan area as opposed to Cleveland," Rosner said. "Endorsements can always find where he lives, but living here and being the face of the franchise will give him the opportunity to enter into the type of discussions that might not be available in Cleveland."

Are you laughing yet? How about now:

"This is the business capital of the world, and there's more international business done out of New York than Cleveland or any other market in the NBA," Rosner said. "It's short-sided to think only about his endorsement portfolio. Those people will always find him. But his business portfolio has the potential to expand enormously if he's in this environment full time."

These quotes were seriously the icing on the cake for this post. Even though LeBron makes lots of money, it does not buy happiness. And how does LeBron playing for the Knicks or Nets have anything to do with international business? He is an ATHLETE! He is focused on basketball right now, not how much he can expand his portfolio. He already has endorsement deals on lock. A few months ago, I was in Chicago's Niketown. There is an entire floor devoted to him. There is a lifesize statue of him right in the middle. Does that mean if he goes to Chicago he gets the entire store? Michael Jordan also only has one floor of his merchandise and he actually played in Chicago. Endorsements are endorsements and if companies want you to sell their product bad enough they will come to you, whether you are in Cleveland or NYC or, I don't know, Iceland. James is their investment, their asset. The only way he would become a liability is if he, God forbid, pulls a Tiger Woods. But even Tiger still has a line of $90 golf shirts on Nike.com

7. LeBron did not help build up this team only to throw it all away
I remember when I was a freshman in high school and everyone was talking about "The King". At the time, I was just an amateur Cleveland fan. I liked the teams and I knew the main players but I was more concerned with being insecure and conceited all at the same time. But, I was always interested when the boys in my English class would talk about the great LeBron James. So I looked him up and thought, wow, this guy's pretty hot. Now, I am about to graduate college and have become much more a sports fan than I was 8 years ago. And LeBron has gone from being the most talked about high school athlete of last decade to the most talked about pro-athlete of this decade. He came to this team that was 17-65 the season before his draft year. He was their savior. He was the one who would change the future of Cleveland sports. It was because of him that the team changed the way it ran things. Now, he is surrounded by all-star caliber, from veterans of the game to players who have evolved as Cavaliers. It doesn't matter that Shaq only has one year left of contract, which a lot of people say is the key reason James will leave. LeBron has it together and even if the slim chance happens that he doesn't get his first ring this season, he is going to have a much better chance of eventually getting it with the Cavs than if he went to the lowly Nets. Why would any intelligent person think that he would go to a team that just might end up with a worse record than the team he signed with 7 years ago? And so what if his friend Sean Carter (that's Jay-Z, in case you were confused) is rumored to buy the Nets and move them to Brooklyn? That doesn't mean he has to follow suit. Not to Brooklyn or Madison Square Garden. The only place he knows he has any business playing is right off of Ontario Street in Cleveland, OH. Oh, and the whole number change thing. If he was going anywhere else next season he would not have to change his number, you only have to do that sort of thing if you are staying with the same team. So chew on that one NYC marketing experts.

Well, maybe I only have 7 reasons at the moment. I'm sure there are more and I'm sure I will figure them out. But I am getting tired and if I keep going I just might start making as much sense as, well, LeBron going to New York. I feel that this was a pretty good start to my blogging experience. There will be many more to come. Maybe someone will actually care. I once had a teacher say that you're the best writer in the world until someone else reads your work. I still have a lot to learn but I'm not done with school just yet so I might as well keep on practicing. LeBron practiced his talent and now he has everybody talking about his future. Lets just hope I'm right and he stays were he belongs.