Chase Stewart | Staff Reporter
Posted July 18, 2014; 8:30 a.m.
Over the past few weeks, LeBron James had the entire National Basketball League and its fan base waiting in anticipation over which team the four-time regular season MVP would decide to join for the next portion of his already storied career.
LeBron’s decision this time around came in a much different fashion than his previous decision in the summer of 2010 when he took center stage on ESPN and announced on live television that he would be departing his hometown Cleveland Cavaliers to spend the next four years wearing a Miami Heat uniform.
In the wake of that decision, hilarity ensued for Cavalier fans, and once a fair share of James’ Cavalier jerseys had been burned, tears were shed and the entire city of Cleveland mourned the loss of its favorite son, the dust settled and James played the next four seasons in Miami, in which the Heat went to four straight NBA Finals and won two of them.
At the conclusion of the 2014 NBA Finals in which the Miami Heat lost in five games to the San Antonio Spurs, LeBron opted out of his contract with the Heat and decided it was time to head in a different direction once more.
This time around, however, there was no ESPN television appearance from the NBA’s most talented player and not a word was heard from anyone in LeBron’s camp on where the superstar was heading.
On the morning of July 11, the silence was broken as LeBron and Sports Illustrated collectively released a personalized essay titled “I’m Coming Home” in which the four-time MVP thoroughly laid out why he was returning to his birthplace, northeast Ohio, to play once more for the Cleveland Cavaliers.
LeBron’s letter leaked with humility and the desire for the city’s prodigal son to bring a NBA championship to the city of Cleveland, a feat that has never been accomplished. Knowing how difficult winning championships in the present-day NBA is, LeBron made no promises in his letter with the exception of promising the city of Cleveland that he is coming home for good and will dedicate every last bit of his abilities to brining a title to the Cavalier organization.
Two Lindenwood students and avid LeBron James fans weighed in on LeBron’s decision. Senior Wes Kuhn was pleased with the way the four-time MVP went about his business this time around.
“I was not a fan of the way LeBron announced his departure from Cleveland a few years back, but I was very struck with the class and dignity he displayed this time around. I am glad he is going back home,” Kuhn said.
Senior Jacob McDermott also weighed in on the big news by expressing his excitement for LeBron’s return to Cleveland.
“He has unfinished business there and I think he is really dedicated to bringing a championship to the city of Cleveland and northeast Ohio in general. It would mean so much and be so good for the people there to have a NBA title, and if anyone is going to bring them one, it’s LeBron James.”
The Cavaliers fan base will wait in anticipation for the start of the 2014-2015 NBA season, as they look forward to the return of James and the beginning of his second journey to bring a title to the city of Cleveland.
