Written by Dave Kolonich

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My latest aberration has included engaging in something that I always swore I would never touch. 

No, not you Colt McCoy.  Sit down.  Oh, nevermind - you already are.

Instead, in the past few days, I – along with millions of others – have become obsessed with the sudden collapse of LeBron James and the resulting swarm of desperation and hostility brought on by this latest chapter of historical Cleveland disappointment. 

Although, if you read this site every so often, you’ll know I’m much more interested in the media reaction to such an event.  But then again, the events to follow this summer could prove to be a generation-defining experience for anyone with ties to Cleveland.

In the media, the cruelly efficient manner in which nearly every prominent sports writer has attached sinister words of dread to LeBron James and the Cavs’ future is beyond fascinating.

I knew we lived and operated in a post-modern society, one in which judgments are conceived and implemented at lightning fast speed – but I have to admit that the past few days’ worth of criticism aimed at Cleveland’s most important sports figure ever has been staggering. 

I won’t bother to list the 45 or so articles that describe the unraveling of both a franchise and city.  Just Google “curse” and you can waste an afternoon.

Or, just check out this headline…

Simmons – Death of Pro Basketball in Cleveland

Assuming the Celtics clinch the series on Thursday in Boston — a game in which LeBron James and the Cavaliers will have more pressure on them than any team in the history of the NBA playoffs’ second round, and also a game that could determine how the next 12 years of NBA titles unfold and possibly assassinate professional basketball in Cleveland — we could end up remembering Game 5 as LeBron’s Last Cleveland Home Game Ever, One Of The Best Five Nights In Knicks History and/or The Game We Realized That LeBron Was Really The Next Karl Malone. So what happened? How did things fall apart completely, totally and (possibly) irrevocably in less than two hours?

…

Only this time, with LeBron James, it’s happening right now. Round 2. At the age of 25. With the weight of a city on his shoulders. With a big decision looming. With the stench of a dreadful Game 5 still lingering. With an experienced Boston team (and crowd) waiting. On Thursday night, the cement will be poured for LeBron James. It’s time. I have no idea what will happen, and neither do you.

I forgot about “death.”  FYI – “Cleveland Death” is another wildly successful search.

Although I could envision a post-LeBron Cavalier fate similar to that of the barren, quasi-professional offering that the Indians present – are things really this bad in Cleveland?

Will basketball truly die with the exit of LeBron?

Or, would it really have continued living with him?

Just consider the expansion case of the Browns.  Has there been a more frustrating team to watch over the past decade then the Browns?  Beyond all of the dysfunction and losing, the general fact that the expansion era Browns play a style of football that is downright painful and sometimes offensive to watch only serves to enhance the idea that Cleveland is a football city.

You do remember watching, right?

After all, despite LeBron and the Cavs’ sensational regular season finishes and teasing playoff exits, the true buzz that surrounds the city remains the Browns.  You know, the team now entering its fourth/fifth management team in a decade – the one who ripped off four straight wins to accomplish a 5-11 mark.  The one pinning its 2010 hopes on a slumping, aging QB and a coach on the eternal hot seat.

As for things dying – you have to assume that if football has not withered away in Cleveland – or been taken out back and shot by now, it won’t ever happen.

As for the Cavaliers – it may be a completely different story. 

Perhaps the reason I’ve never passionately associated with the Cavaliers is because of the temporal nature of the league and its players.  In most respects, an NBA roster can completely change overnight, and the addition of just one or two players can transform a franchise from lottery dweller to champion.

Or, in the Cavs’ case – the franchise can go from Ricky Davis to LeBron James in a heartbeat.

To me, this means that Cavalier fans were never truly that.  No one truly believed in the Cavs, or passionately followed the team as a whole – they followed James and invested their hopes in him.  Had James pulled off a championship here, it’s hard to even envision such an accomplishment as one that belongs to the team, or even the collective city. 

Simply put, that imaginary title would have been LeBron’s.

In the future – and of course, that’s a completely different story….  Don’t you just love how quickly things move in the “new” media?

Mike Lupica – Royal Courting

Ian O’ Connor – LeBron to NY

As for that future – since there are legions of LeBron fans and relatively few Cavalier ones – I can’t imagine that the city would rally behind whatever collection of players are presented next year.  Regardless of the names – either current players or new free agent acquisitions – the Cavs will enter back into their status as a temporal sports diversion.

Does this mean that basketball in Cleveland will ”die?”

Compared to what, exactly? 

And while this occurs – by whatever definition you would like to attach here - legions of Browns faithful will yet again invest their sports souls into the only franchise that is more than just the sum of its parts….regardless of the painful outcomes that will inevitably occur.

Talk about something rock solid. 

Or, put it this way – would you rather pin your hopes on one person, or an entire franchise?

Finally, I don’t want to sound completely cold-hearted regarding LeBron’s collapse and the painful realization that may occur this summer.  In so many ways, he revitalized the city’s sports scene – at least in terms of casting a national spotlight on what is still one of the greatest cities in the country. 

As a player, he was the kind of transcendent, “spiritual” force – the sort of phrase that could only be bestowed by someone like Jim Brown.  Easily, LeBron is the best athlete this city has seen since the days of Brown – and probably its greatest of all-time.

However, to put it simply – stuff happens.  People move on.   

Speaking of which, this post-game reflection by Brian Windhorst is probably the best piece of sports writing I have seen in years.  Both in terms of rational, analytical criticism and genuine passion – you won’t find much better.

Again, to reinforce the idea that an entire city followed a player – and not a team – Windhorst is almost lamenting the end of a long relationship – some long-ago affair that is now approaching a day of reckoning.  It’s almost as if Windhorst – who has devoted the last several years almost exclusively to LeBron – has now realized what the rest of the city is suddenly waking up to.  

Windhorst – Final Analysis

There are many reasons for LeBron to re-sign. No. 1 is it is home and he’s deeply bonded to the area. No. 2 is he knows the Cavs will make more changes and spend more money and attempt to do whatever it takes to get better. No. 3, with him committing long-term, it would free up the team to make moves that might make more sense than the short-term stuff they tried over the last year. Deep down, he is happy with everything the Cavs have done for him.

But with the other opportunities in front of him, he must also be real. He must also consider whether making a move now is the right decision for his career. He says he wants to win championships. For a long time, it looked like Cleveland made so much more sense than New York or New Jersey or Miami or Chicago.

In the cold and lonely light of another playoff ouster, the truth may be that it isn’t the truth. And that might create the worst-case scenario for Cavs fans in about six weeks.

“Cold and lonely lights” withstanding, perhaps the most comforting thought for Cleveland sports is that despite all of our struggles and a future that is not without its share of clear doubt – the Browns – a team, something far more than just the sum of its parts – remains.

Take it for what it is.