Things To Know About ESPN’s Controversial Show ‘The Decision’ Starring LeBron James

LeBron James, a professional basketball player with the Cleveland Cavaliers in the National Basketball Association (NBA), made the decision to sign with the Miami Heat during the ESPN television show The Decision. Live coverage began on July 8, 2010. After spending seven seasons in Cleveland, where he won two NBA Most Valuable Player awards and was selected to six All-Star games, James became an unrestricted free agency.

Things To Know About ESPN’s Controversial Show ‘The Decision’ Starring LeBron James

On July 8, 2010, LeBron James changed the landscape of the NBA for years to come with a few simple words:

“In this fall… this is very tough… in this fall I’m going to take my talents to South Beach and join the Miami Heat. I feel like it’s going to give me the best opportunity to win and to win for multiple years, and not only just to win in the regular season or just to win five games in a row or three games in a row, I want to be able to win championships. And I feel like I can compete down there.”

— LeBron James

Naturally, it took him some time to really utter those words. When you can stretch things out and enrage a whole fan base, why get right to the point?

More than ten years ago, “The Decision,” an extraordinary ESPN special that put an end to one of the craziest free-agency periods in sports history, was immediately perceived as a complete PR disaster. LeBron and the Heat will play the greatest villains in the league this season, thanks in large part to the criticism LeBron and ESPN received for the shoddy organisation of the show from both fans and critics.

1. Neither James, a member of his close circle, nor a TV producer had the initial concept for “The Decision.” Actually, the idea came from a Bill Simmons mailbag fan.

The top of the November 2009 mailbag contained an email from a man named Drew from Columbus, Ohio, who questioned, “What if LeBron announces he would choose his 2010–11 team live on ABC on a certain date for a show called “LeBron’s Choice”?” Simmons suggested a pay-per-view alternative and concurred that the event should be televised.

They’ll pay $44.99 for “Decision 2010: LeBron’s Verdict,” I’m very certain. Simmons authored.

2. David Stern, a former NBA commissioner, vehemently opposed “The Decision.” ESPN was urged to cancel it by him.

According to ex-ESPN executive John Skipper, “I think [he didn’t like it] mainly because the player was in command here,” Van Natta.

Adam Silver, the commissioner since Stern’s retirement in 2014, reportedly had different thoughts about the special due to ESPN’s absurdly high ratings (an average of nearly 10 million viewers). Additionally, the Boys and Girls Clubs of America received more than $2 million in donations.

Stern described the entire event as “ill-conceived, poorly staged, and terribly executed,” but he wouldn’t change his mind.

3. There was no opportunity for discussions even though Jim Gray wasn’t ESPN’s top option to anchor “The Decision” and didn’t even work for the network at the time.

Van Natta claimed that network executives wanted someone like Stuart Scott or Bob Ley to sit next to James at the Greenwich Boys and Girls Club. Gray, who had spoken to Carter and agent Ari Emanuel about creating a TV special and interviewed James when he was in high school, was required to participate in the show by LeBron James’ team.

Gray was originally perplexed by the intensity of the criticism, and years later he was still unable to understand it.

“We produced a television program—a television programme!” In 2016, Gray spoke with Bryan Curtis of The Ringer.

His one regret? He didn’t ask for money because he knew all proceeds were going to charity.

“They should have paid me,” Gray said of ESPN. “They should have paid me a ton.”

4. Kanye West attended “The Decision,” and he passed out during the performance. Seriously.

West made the trip to Greenwich, but according to Courtney Cox, a former stage manager for the ESPN studios who worked on “The Decision,” he missed the most crucial portion of the evening.

A 13-year-old named Donovan Mitchell is also seen standing in front of the Boys & Girls Club. Donovan Mitchell, an All-Star guard, is in fact there.

5. After writing that bizarre letter in Comic Sans criticising James for his “cowardly betrayal” and “shocking act of disloyalty” for declining to re-sign with Cleveland, Cavs owner Dan Gilbert didn’t stop talking. super relaxed

Gilbert persisted, in fact, his rage growing. Gilbert claimed that James had had a “free pass” and that it was “accountability time” in a phone conversation with The Associated Press.

“People have covered up for [James] for way too long,” Gilbert said. “Tonight we saw who he really is.”

Gilbert added that LeBron James “quit” on the Cavs during their 2010 second-round series against the Celtics, which ended James’ initial run in Cleveland.

“Watch the tape,” Gilbert said. “The Boston series was unlike anything in the history of sports for a superstar. . . . It’s not about him leaving. It’s the disrespect. It’s time for people to hold these athletes accountable for their actions. Is this the way you raise your children? I’ve been holding this all in for a long time.”

Gilbert and LeBron James experienced a significant breach as a result of the letter and those remarks, but they were able to mend fences years later and at least keep a professional rapport going during James’ second stay with the Cavaliers. James maintained his pledge to bring a championship to Cleveland, and Gilbert upheld his end of the bargain by lavishly spending on squad upgrades.

 

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