Just a few months ago, LeBron James was starved for attention. Now, he’s had his fill. The problem is, the media is a ravenous lot. Seriously, you can't say the "word" buffet around beat writers without causing a stampede. And LeBron is seated at the head of the dinner table, his plate piled high with food, but suddenly he's lost his appetite.*
LeBron doesn’t like all the scrutiny he’s brought on himself. After the Heat’s second loss to the Celtics, LeBron called for his playing time to be reduced – he declared that 44 minutes were “too much” (that’s more than a whole game, according to Zach Randolph). He then complained that the press blew his comments out of proportion. LeBron, you blew yourself out of proportion when you chose to control the news with your special, instead of just being covered by it. You made a calculated decision to move beyond the highlights to the headlines. You shone the spotlight on yourself, so you can't complain about the inevitable glare.
LeBron went on to say he understands why Randy Moss refuses to speak to the media. Maybe in a few weeks, if the losses continue to pile up, he’ll start to understand why Randy Moss quits during games (something LeBron was already accused of in the playoffs last year) and curses out caterers.
Identifying and sympathizing with a repudiated jerk, is this the road LeBron really wants to travel down? Openly asking for less responsibility isn’t exactly the mark of a great leader. We can’t find fault in LeBron’s game, but there's room for improvement in regards to his remarks (we think he owes his coach an apology) and role models.
*Wow, I've carried this conceit so far, I'm starting to get hungry.
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