There Is No “I” In Loyalty

     It’s one of the oldest adages in sports: There is no “I” in “team.”

     Well, last night, we sports fans also learned there is no “I” in “loyalty”, although there is one in “Miami”.

    In an hour-long televised show that should have been called ABC’s Wide World of Narcissism, Lebron James humbly announced that he is leaving his hometown of Cleveland to become the newest member of the Miami Heat.

    How are you gonna keep them down on the Ohio farm after they’ve seen South Beach?

    In making his announcement on ESPN’S Wide World of Self-Aggrandizement, Lebron said it was a very tough decision for him since he is “all about loyalty.”

    Well, Lebron, I’m not so sure about that.  When it comes to loyalty, you are the John Edwards of the National Basketball Association. 

    Even Lebron confessed that while he is “all about loyalty”, he is also “all about winning.”  And that’s why he’s packing his Nikes so that he can just do it in Miami.  He no doubt remembered the wisdom of the great philosopher Michael Jordan who once observed, “While there is no ‘I’ in team, there is one in ‘win’.”

    Maybe so, but Air Jordan worked for years to bring a championship to Chicago, and although he finished his career with the Washington Wizards, when it came to winning, that was like finishing his career with the Washington Generals.

    Call me old school, but Lebron and I have a different definition not only of the word “loyalty”, but also the word “winning.”

    For me, Ernie Banks was a winner, although he never played on a championship team.  He spent his entire career with those perennial losers, the Chicago Cubs.  Even if they had had free agency back in those days, I seriously doubt that Ernie would have wanted to bolt Chicago so he could play in Yankee pinstripes.

    Johnny Unitas was another winner in my book.  Many years after he retired, Johnny U received a phone call from the Colts’ front office asking if he would come to Indianapolis for a special “Johnny Unitas Day” at a Colts game.

    “Indianapolis?”  Johnny U asked incredulously.  “I never played for Indianapolis!” he exclaimed.  And then, to his everlasting credit, he hung up the phone.

    Bird was a Celtic.  Magic was a Laker.  Yes, they won championships in Boston and L.A., but does one really think they would have jumped ship to Miami if times got tough?

    Yes, it’s true that Shaq left Disney World for Disney Land so that he could win a championship as a Laker.  But while he may have an NBA championship ring on his finger, I don’t put him in the category of a real winner.

    I feel sorry for my buddies in Cleveland.  There are a few things worse in life then being betrayed by your brother.

    But in a funny way, I also feel sorry for Lebron.  He may be a billionaire basketball player, and the winters in Miami will be much warner than those in Cleveland.  But he is also very young.  In time, as he grows older and wiser, he may come to realize that NBA championship rings, while very nice, are not rare.  At least 15 of them are handed out each June.  You can probably buy one on E-bay.

    But for the rest of his life, Lebron could have been something very rare and very special. 

    He could have been a hometown hero.