Written by Cris Sykes

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Cris Sykes knows the rules. Be nice to LeBron. Handle him with kid gloves. Don I know the rules.  Be nice to LeBron.  Handle him with kid gloves.  Don’t make him mad or he will run to a large market quicker than a deer on coke. 

Well ... I don’t care right now.  Knee tendinitis?  Are you serious?  I am calling BS on that one.  Since no one else in the local media will.

So let me get this straight.  In two days, LeBron’s knee tendinitis cleared up to the point that he could go out and score 31 points in 42 minutes of a 13-point win against Minnesota?  A mere two days after not being able to suit up at all, you can log 42 minutes?  Something does not seem right to me.  Either the world needs to be exposed to the treatment he is getting, or he needs to suck it up and play through the pain. 

This all comes at a terrible time for the Cavaliers, who have all but allowed the Detroit Pistons to run away and hide with the #1 seed.  This followed the best non-playoff win in LeBron’s Cavalier career when the Cavs extended their lead over the fast charging Bulls.  That turned out to be all for naught with the embarrassing loss to the Celtics on Sunday.  Sans King James.   

In a season that has such high hopes for the title-starved fans of Cleveland, we have been left to wonder about the drive of our biggest star.  Nobody can convince me that LeBron didn’t relax his way through the first 50 games of this season.  If you want to be a global icon, Sir James, the first step will be to win a NBA Championship.  The easiest way to do that is to play as many home games as possible in the playoffs.  The best route to get there is to have the best record in your conference in the regular season.  Of course, that means your best player has to bring his best effort 82 times a year.  If he isn’t willing to do this, why would his teammates? 

Sunday against the Celtics was just icing on the cake.  There is no reason LeBron could not start that game, limit his minutes if need be, and pull out a very important road win.  OK, there is one reason.  If LeBron dons the wine and gold cape, his coach is not strong enough to limit his minutes, and LBJ is not willing to have his minutes limited.  It seems that if 35+ minutes are not absolutely necessary, then he is content to wear a suit.  This is not and cannot be acceptable.  Not even from “The King”. 

If the #2 seed becomes a thing of the past, I know I will look back at the terrible losses, caused by the spotty effort of our hero, as a major reason for this.  It sure would suck to be at the top of the conference for 75 games, only to have it stolen from us and have to face the Pistons in round two

That is ... if our hero decided round one is worth his total effort.