LeBron Finally Gets His Ring!

Last night after the Miami Heat demolished the OKC Thunder my phone didn't ring once. No text messages, no tweets, and no facebook posts. For a trash talker like me the silence was deafening. The absence of correspondence could only mean one thing, Cleavie Wonder was right. For a master prognosticator like myself the outcome was inevitable. I can only assume the nay sayers didn't want to hear me gloat endlessly when my prediction came true.

But enough about me. The most scrutinized athlete in the history of sports finally got the critics and detractors off his back. LeBron James was a man among boys in the 2012 NBA Finals averaging an astounding 28.6 points, 10.2 rebounds, and 7.4 assists. The finals MVP has now validated his greatness and belongs in the conversation as one of the NBA's all time greats. The irony is that the accomplishment will go largely unappreciated because it was expected. After all, isn't this why the big 3 came together in the first place?

To be fair, LeBron James has always been in a no win situation. Since he graced the cover of Sports Illustrated at 16 years old fans and media alike have had unrealistic expectations of how his career would end up. Everyone thought he would win multiple championships by the time he was 25 and revolutionize the NBA. In years past LeBron internalized the external pressures and struggled to fulfill his potential, but in 2012 he simply wouldn't be denied. Even though he reached his short term goal fans in Cleveland are heart broken and basketball purists continue to criticize him for taking his talents down to South Beach.

The first championship is always the hardest, but now that's out of the way. With a mediocre Eastern Conference there's no reason LeBron and the Heat shouldn't have the opportunity to contend for multiple championships in the years to come. The Miami Heat proved the formula works. Superstars will sacrifice individual success for the greater good if they believe in one another. Now that the MoHeatos have figured out how to win the the big one the league is in trouble. Congrats LeBron. You're a made guy now.