Heir-brained Lebron

So you really are the next Jordan.

Recently Cleveland Cavalier Ira Newble drafted an open letter chastising China for its complicity in the current Darfur genocide. He also urged fellow professional hoopsters to show solidarity on the issue. Newble was able to get everybody on the team to sign the letter…except The Chosen One and Damon Jones. James’ response as to why he didn’t sign?

``It was basically not having enough information,'' LeBron said in an interview before Game 4 of his team's playoff game against the Nets in New Jersey three days ago. ``Any decision I make I have to have extensive knowledge.''

Oh that’s right, I guess even with a few hundred thousand dead, millions displaced, a growing international outcry and oh yeah, rampant gang-rape, you still have to hear both sides of the story. I guess I'll also reserve judgment until I hear the Barbara Walter’s Special where she sits down to a heartfelt interview with members of the Janjaweed.

Are you kidding me? Is James so beholden to Nike that he won’t even sign a letter condemning genocide? Wow. James has made no secret of his desire to be the world’s richest athlete. I don’t think he’ll eclipse Tiger due to the nature of their respective sports, but it’ll be close. Should he remain healthy, he will undoubtedly eclipse Jordan’s career earnings both in salary and endorsements. While James has yet to match Jordan’s on-court accomplishments, he has already shown he will equal Jordan’s calculated disengagement from any public political forum. (If you recall during the 1990 North Carolina Senate race, upon being asked if he would openly support an opponent of Republican incumbent Jesse Helms, North Carolina’s favorite son infamously stated “Republicans buy shoes too.”) Here you have one of the most visible humans on the planet unwilling to speak up for what amounts to a moral no-brainer. In an ideal world, James would have taken this issue along with the clout a $90MM contract confers directly to Nike CEO Phil Knight and said, “Hey, we can like do something about this.”

What’s sad is that I kind of dig Lebron. Despite his constant courting of comparisons between himself and MJ and his questionable business decisions, I find he carries himself very well. (If I had $100MM at the age of 18, I’d probably walk around wearing a platinum and diamond encrusted bank statement hanging from my neck along with some flip-flops, that’s it.) He seems to have a real personality (at least in his commercials) and it is a likeable one. Given the unimaginable amount of hype, constant fan and media interest, endless scrutiny and dissection of Lebron as a player and celebrity, I believe he’s done an admirable job of staying sane. I don’t believe the human ego is built to sustain that kind of pressure. I’m more surprised when a prominent celebrity turns out to be more like Will Smith than Eddie Murphy.

Maybe after he’s accumulated a few more dump trucks full of lucre, won a few titles and gotten more fan adulation only to watch it fade, he’ll understand. He’ll understand why a figure like Muhammad Ali will be a far more important figure in the history books than his current idol MJ. He’ll understand that becoming a “global icon” means more than just being the poster boy for an army of corporations. He’ll understand that eventually when the camera is on him and the microphone is in his face, people will want to hear something other than, “Obey your thirst.”