So I'm getting ready to do some TV last night with Newy Scruggs and Pat Doney on NBC 5 after
Cowboys 36, Giants 31. We're on the field behind the end zone, when a wayward football comes bounding our way. It caroms off the wall and nudges our camera before harmless coming to a rest at my feet.
I casually pick it up, turn to throw it to whoever sent it our way and ...
LeBron James?!
Yep, the best basketball player on the planet is also a huge football fan. And his favorite team is - of course - your Dallas Cowboys.
And after the game he's like a (big) kid in a (huge) candy shop. He's running routes. He's catching touchdowns. He's attempting field goals. He's sweating and smiling and exchanging cell-phone numbers with DeMarcus Ware and ...
Hey, wait a second. We hate LeBron James, right?
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James had a fun night at AT&T Stadium. Posed for that fascinating pic with owner Jerry Jones and former wrestler Hulk Hogan. Hugged Ware (whom he dwarfs, by the way). Watched the game in a suite.
And, yep, got booed mercilessly when he was shown on JumboJerry.
James smiled, tipped his cap and even pointed to the Cowboys' star on the hat in a sort of peace offering. Nope. Still more boos.
But now we're conflicted aren't we?
LeBron James is the guy who grabs your girl's butt in the bar, then turns around wearing your all-time favorite band's T-Shirt when you confront him. You initially hate him, but there's no denying the common bonds whether it's the band or the football team or the irresistibly nice booty.
We're Cowboys fans. And we're Mavericks fans. We'll never forget his mocking of Dirk Nowitzki's flu in the 2011 NBA Finals. But - seeing that he clearly, genuinely loves America's Team - are we ready to forgive?
Great write up, Leborn being a Cowboys fan does create a conflict for DFW sports fans. For me though, I will root against him in basketball but embrace him as a fellow Cowboys fan.
ReplyDeleteCome on now, the guy might be the all time best basketball player to ever live. Boo him on the basketball court. If he's cheering for your team, he's a fan like you, albeit one that is far richer and with more access than you'll ever have. I'm a Spurs fan and this doesn't bother me at all. Hell, I can't believe Jerry hasn't tried to get him suited up for a practice.
ReplyDeleteWe don't have to embrace him. He is free to like whichever team he likes. He doesn't need our permission.
ReplyDeleteLebron is a Cowboys fan, and as such I am not a fan. Still love the Mavs but my new fav is Lebron..
ReplyDeleteWhen I saw the reaction, I just shook my head. Professional athletes are just that: professionals. Rare is the athlete that stays with one team throughout his career. Respect him for being a fan of the Cowboys, though.
ReplyDeleteWatching my daughters' high school volleyball games, I cheer for them loudly when they do well. But I don't root for others' failure. There is something fundamentally wrong with someone who does
that. That is someone's daughter out there, too. And you wouldn't want someone booing your kid just because of their laundry.
LeBron James has done nothing to you personally. Except maybe steal away some of your joy in the '06 Fina.... oh wait. What's that? HE WASN'T ON THE HEAT IN '06? But he WAS on the Heat in 2011, when THE MAVS WON the championship? Get over it, already. Cough. Cough.