LeBron James swears he’d come off the bench to help the Cavs
High-level athletes make a habit of telling reporters (and virtually anyone who will listen) that they’re all about winning. Individual accolades and statistics mean little if they don’t attend championships, or at least some amount of success that could possibly lead to a ring.
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As someone who has often been criticized for not being enough of a winner (whatever that means), Cleveland Cavaliers superstar LeBron James has spent plenty of time informing the public that he is in fact focused on team success more than anything else. So it should not come as a huge surprise that LeBron told the assembled media Wednesday that he would be willing to come off the bench. From Chris Haynes for the Northeast Ohio Media Group:
“For me being the leader of the team, it doesn’t matter. Whatever this team needs in order for this team to win, I’ll come off the bench and I’m serious,” James said. “I’ll come off the bench. If it helps our team, that’s what it’s about, man.”
The idea of James becoming the Cleveland Cavaliers’ sixth man is comical and unfathomable. He’s the best player in the game. Cavs coach David Blatt gave a chuckle when he heard what James said.
Needless to say, benching James isn’t on his agenda.
“No. No. He’s doing fine where he is,” Blatt said. “He’s doing quite fine.”
After declaring that he would do anything for wins, LeBron dressed up as the Beast and emoted by a fireplace for nearly eight minutes:
Blatt’s reaction is the proper one here, because LeBron’s hypothetical is so unfathomable that it doesn’t even have much to do with the reality of NBA basketball. Yes, stars like Manu Ginobili have come off the bench before, but that is usually a specific reaction to a player’s injury history and/or skillset. James is the focus of everything his team does. Bringing him off the bench would be similar to serving a whole porterhouse steak as an appetizer.
Nevertheless, we certainly cannot argue now that James wouldn’t do whatever it takes to win. If he would come off the bench, then he’d likely also climb a really tall mountain, or fight a hyena, or even save Timofey Mozgov’s pet cat from a burning building. Chances are he won’t need to do any of those things for the good of the Cavs, but they’re about as likely as the best player of his generation acting as a sixth man.
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Eric Freeman is a writer for Ball Don’t Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter!
