King James Gospel
Fansided

How LeBron James Has Elevated the NBA

By Kameron Duncan

May 25, 2017; Boston, MA, USA; The Cleveland Cavaliers pose for a team photo after defeating the Boston Celtics in game five of the Eastern conference finals of the NBA Playoffs at the TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports
May 25, 2017; Boston, MA, USA; The Cleveland Cavaliers pose for a team photo after defeating the Boston Celtics in game five of the Eastern conference finals of the NBA Playoffs at the TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports /
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May 25, 2017; Boston, MA, USA; The Cleveland Cavaliers pose for a team photo after defeating the Boston Celtics in game five of the Eastern conference finals of the NBA Playoffs at the TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports
May 25, 2017; Boston, MA, USA; The Cleveland Cavaliers pose for a team photo after defeating the Boston Celtics in game five of the Eastern conference finals of the NBA Playoffs at the TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports /

Rob Parker’s assertion that LeBron James will leave the NBA “in ruins” is completely untrue.

On Monday’s episode of Fox Sports 1’s “The Herd”, Rob Parker said that LeBron James will leave the NBA “in ruins” when he retires. Parker also said that James has done nothing to elevate the game during his career.

“The Father of Imbalance”

Parker used that moniker to describe LeBron’s primary impact on the game. He said that LeBron’s decision to leave the Cavaliers and join Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh on the Miami Heat in 2010 was the catalyst for the lack of parity in the NBA today. Parker also believes that LeBron’s decision to initially leave the Cavs had some degree of influence on Kevin Durant. Durant chose to leave the Oklahoma City Thunder for the Golden State Warriors prior to this season.

Parker believes that LeBron has somehow ruined the competitive nature of the league itself, turning it from a land of opportunity for 30 teams into easy pickings for two or three.

First of all, Parker fails to mention that the NBA has never truly experienced parity. In the 1980’s, either the Boston Celtics or the Los Angeles Lakers appeared in every single NBA Finals in the decade. The 1990’s were dominated by the Chicago Bulls, and the Lakers and Spurs reigned supreme in the early 2000’s.

Many of the same criticisms levied against the Cavaliers and Warriors today were thrown at the Bulls. A 1997 Sports Illustrated cover literally read: “Are The Bulls So Good They’re Bad For The NBA?”

In the article, Jack McCallum echoes some of the same talking points we hear today:

"Seven weeks remain in the regular season, but is there any reason the engravers should not get started on the championship trophy right now? Does anyone envision a scenario (other than an injury to Jordan) in which the Chicago Bulls—50-7 at week’s end, seven games better than their nearest competitors, the Detroit Pistons—do not breeze to their second straight title and their fifth of this decade?"

Blaming LeBron for a perceived lack of parity is ridiculous. There’s never really been a great deal of parity.

As for all of Parker’s rambling about dominant teams being bad for the NBA, consider this.

Game 7 of the Finals last year had the highest ratings for a Finals game since Michael Jordan’s last game with the Chicago Bulls in 1998.