On Dwyane Wade and Miami's culture of neglect; LeBron James and Cleveland's subservience; and loyalty.
Dwyane Wade has a championship ring, but it can easily be argued that LeBron James has gotten more support from his franchise than the Heat star. As James talks about loyalty and having a team worthy of a title before July 1, Bill Livingston wonders if he'll recognize how good he already has it.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Dwyane Wade was never "The Chosen One."
He was a late-bloomer in high school in Chicago, who actually grew as a college player instead of slumming around there until he could turn pro. Miami selected him fifth in the 2003 NBA Draft. It was the same one in which the Ping-Pong Ball Deliverance gave the Cavaliers No. 1 pick LeBron James, presumably by way of a manger.
LeBron was so good, he went straight to the NBA from high school, which was allowable under the rules at the time. A tattoo, "The Chosen One," scrolls across his back in letters shaped like the "D" on the Detroit Tigers cap.
On his torso, added later, are tattoos reading "Family" and "Loyalty."
Unhappily, James' leap to the NBA deprived him of the red-carpet college recruiting treatment, although he received a reasonable facsimile every single day of his past seven years as a Cavalier.
Wade won a championship in his third season, while playing with a younger, friskier Shaquille O'Neal than James had at his side this season.
That 2005-06 Heat team really went "all in" to win it all. Shaq, Gary Payton, Alonzo Mourning and Jason Williams were all 30 or older. James Posey and Antoine Walker were closing in on the milestone birthday. They were this year's Boston Celtics, only their grizzled veterans were supporting players for Wade, who almost single-handedly stole the Finals from Dallas.
James then carried an overmatched Cavs team to the 2007 Finals, where they were swept.
Since then, Miami has instituted a two-year scorched-earth program to dump salary and clear the decks for the free agency free-for-all that begins July 1.
Wade carried the Heat to the playoffs without much help the past two seasons. Miami was ousted in the first round each time. His efforts this year were the most valiant since James took a 45-win Cavs team in 2008 to the last minute of the last game against the eventual champion Celtics.
James rocked the Cavaliers' organization when he openly demanded changes after that seventh game in Boston.
Changes he got. In came Mo Williams, a splendid (regular-season) sidekick, and back came Joe Smith for the stretch run. When Orlando upset the Cavs in the conference finals in 2009, in came taller wing players in Jamario Moon and Anthony Parker to defend 3-pointers. In came Antawn Jamison, the "stretch" forward the team had sought ever since Donyell Marshall got old. In came Shaq, who spoke of winning "a ring for the king."
It didn't work, because of Shaq's injury and playoff inconsistency; because of James' elbow; because of Boston catching the big wave; because of Mike Brown's coaching; because of Danny Ferry's personnel judgment; because of James' barely-show-up effort in Game 5. It really is defeat -- not victory, as is popularly supposed -- that has a thousand fathers.
Now both Wade and James are free agents. But nobody really expects Wade to leave Miami.
Chicago and Miami are two teams that have enough salary cap space available to acquire two of the three top free agents -- James, Wade and Toronto's Chris Bosh.
Miami could re-sign Wade, sign James, then work a sign-and-trade deal with Toronto for Bosh, perhaps in exchange for tantalizing, but erratic, Michael Beasley. The Bulls could sign James and barter Joakim Noah for Bosh.
Wade, who was has played hurt for the Heat, who was pretty much told to suck it up in Miami, recently criticized Chicago, his home town. He denounced the Bulls for their history of disloyalty to key franchise figures. Perhaps he meant letting Ben Gordon leave and trading John Salmons. Perhaps he meant dismissing coach Vinny Del Negro. Perhaps he meant the unhappy way Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen left.
It was, by implication, an endorsement of Miami, despite the systematic culture of neglect the Heat imposed for the last two seasons.
By contrast, James, whose every wish was the Cavaliers' command, who has been buttressed with a far better supporting cast, went on Larry King's cable show and said Cleveland has the "edge" in the free agency derby.
That's the most he can say? An "edge"?
So is it about family and loyalty with the player who has dominated this city's sports landscape for most of the decade?
Or is it about holding the franchise hostage, overshadowing this year's Finals, and becoming some desperate city or other's chosen one, which his huge ego seems to demand?