Agreed. Fetishization of youth deserves criticizing, but that’s wholly compatible with thinking that childhood is awesome.

I don’t know that I’ve commonly heard the argument that childhood is “optimal.” The sentiment you seem to be arguing against is that childhood is “best.”

Jackson continued, “I was glad to not inherit a roster that still included Nate Robinson. He was always a grumpy munchkin.”

And Norwegians are considered to be the charismatic Scandavians!

I never claimed all greats were coachable. But, I can name 50 HOFers who were. Lebron can choose which group he wants to be a part of.

I never claimed all greats were coachable. But, I can name 50 HOFers who were. Lebron can choose which group he wants to be a part of.

There’s a third option. Lebron can try to be more coachable. Doesn’t seem to be a problem for lots of other all-time greats.

You’ve posted two comments under your new burner account, and they’re both terrible. Maybe this is isn’t for you.

From any other angle, the trophy looks much less like a dick. But, it is from a tournament sponsored by a pharmacy called Long’s, which is an added layer of hilarity.

You should have seen what it looked like when this trophy exploded all over its owner.

Since Cleveland was hosting, wouldn’t the score be 0-17, making it “Tribute to J.R. Smith Night?”

The logo’s fine, but those unis look like an NBDL’s alternate jersey. Woof.

I’m convinced that Haisley is not actually familiar with the sport of soccer and is just seeing how long he can write about it before his boss catches on.

Bird’s great. Hell, Barkley’s great.

I watched Game 3 while very high and had the revelation that I should invest $10,000 to print and sell T-shirts that said “I Don’t Think You’re Ready for This DELLY!”

I agree with you 100% that it’s not necessary to be considered one of the greats. There are plenty of greats with fewer than six. Hell, I think Barkley’s a great and he’s got a donut (figuratively, and probably literally).

I can’t disagree that we all latch onto the athletes we grew up on. Still, some names transcend eras (Ruth, Ali, Owens, Gretzky). Maybe I’m too inside my own perspective, but I think guys like Woods and Jordan will occupy that same space, but that Lebron hasn’t reached that level yet, even if he’s every bit as skilled…

“to say that Lebron isn’t great when he has won it all, twice, tells me that most people see it as six or bust.”

As far as “what does it matter” how a player is remembered, that’s actually a pretty complicated question. In the grand scheme of the world, it means zip (like most things). But, we give assign importance to meaningless things all the time (Apple vs. Mac, Star Wars vs. Star Trek, etc.). It’s just part of the cultural…

You make some good points, especially about how the growing sophistication in stat keeping and analysis will help clarify the conversation in the future.