"I think it would be more important and significant to win a championship in Cleveland than it would be in Miami," he said.
Charles BarkleyTNT basketball commentator Charles Barkley has had many a run-in with Cleveland through the years - dissing the city, saying the Cavs didn't push the ball enough. But in this video from NBA TV, Barkley talks with former Clevelander Vince Cellini and former Cav Eric Snow (plus Chris Webber) about LeBron's decision to leave Says the former 76ers and Suns star:
I was disappointed. I wanted LeBron to stay in Cleveland, to be honest with you. . . . I think it would be more important and significant to win a championship in Cleveland than it would be in Miami, if he wins it.
If I was 25, I would try to win it by myself . . . not technically, by myself, but being "the guy." . . . LeBron is never going to be "the guy."
. . . Cleveland to me, they were still one of the five or six best teams in the NBA. . . . It wasn't like he was playing on a bad team. I wish he would have tried to win it by himself as "the guy."