AdamStovicek.com

As I watch the final moments of the Cleveland Cavs’ NBA season in the Eastern Conference Finals, I’m reminded of a past when I still enjoyed the game of basketball. Since my high school years, I’ve been disappointed with the game in general. Living in Cleveland didn’t make it any easier as it stands that our professional sports teams can never fully grasp the brass ring.

Then came LeBron James.

Since LeBron graduated from St. Vincent-St. Mary’s, I’ve given him every opportunity to disappoint me. With his talent and the subsequent media hype, I was fully prepared to endure another NBA primadonna who felt the world owed him everything. Worst, he’d do it while playing for the home team. For six years, I waited and in the end my expectations fell short.

While I have to live with another year with another home town sports team coming only within sight of the brass ring, I am thankful that the young man they named the league’s MVP this year brought my heart back to the game. My friends and I agree. LeBron James is pound for pound the best all-around player the NBA has ever seen.

His attitude both on and off the court is second to none. St. Vincent-St. Mary’s made a very educated, articulate, responsible, and respectful young man out of him. If the NBA were ever in need of an ambassador of the sport, they should look no further.

To LeBron James, Žydrunas Ilgauskas, Mo Williams, Delonte West, Anderson Varejão, Daniel Gibson, Sasha Pavlovic, Joe Smith, Wally Szczerbiak, Ben Wallace, Mike Brown, and everyone else from the Cavs….

Thanks for a great season. We’ll be counting the days until the start of the next.