**Today concludes our 5-part series as we give you the definitive ranking of the five coolest sports figures of 2010. To check out the entire list, please click here. Here's number #1...**
Here at ETSF, there's something that we admire more than just having an epic performance on a given night, or spitting witty one-liners to the media, or being quintessentially calm under fire. When someone has their mind made up that they're going to do something so blasphemous, so audacious, and so ridiculous that it seems foolish...yet, the results are genius.
There's nothing cooler than that. Nothing.
With that being said, there was only one person to crown as the coolest of them all in the calendar year. It took Kenny and I approximately 0.6 seconds to come to the conclusion. Ladies and gentlemen, the coolest motherf*cka of 2010...Mr. LeBron Raymone James.
Now I understand that some of you saw the photo above, read the title, and was like...these dudes have lost their got damned minds.
Well of course we have.You knew that when you first ventured to this lonely little piece of the internet back on February 21st, 2008 when there was tumbleweeds going across the screen and the only people reading it were me, myself, and my mama. What in the hell is an "Ed The Sports Man?" You knew we were crazy when you heard that my esteemed colleague had decided that he would not engage in social media tomfoolery of any kind for an entire week. The man was cussed out, had tomatoes thrown at him, and was called out his name. You know what though...there's something glorious about coming out of the shenanigans unscathed. You come out feeling like a new man and that anything's possible. (KG)
So seeing LeBron pull off the ultimate heist of every single basketball fan's emotions for the last two and a half years, deal with the internal debauchery that was the Cleveland Cavaliers organization like it never happened (okay, outside of Game 5), organized "The Decision", walking back into "The Q" and putting the Cleveland fanbase on its deathbed, and giving the defending champion Lakers a proverbial butt-whupping....
The man not only relished and embraced wearing the black hat, but the villain has made himself the most intriguing person in sports. The man went on national television, sat down in the Boys and Girls Club of Greenwich, Connecticut (oxymoron) and pulled off a Nino Brown in front of the millions (and millions) of the NBA fanbase and beyond. The man was passing out turkeys (raised 3 million buckaroos for disadvantaged children) and all anyone could do was look like the old man who hated Nino Brown to the core.
This is what pure evil does...Nino Brown passed out turkeys, Marlo Stanfield passed out $100 bills to the kids in the hood, the Joker dumped out a million dollars while "Who Can You Trust" was playing, and LeBron James raised three million dollars for the Boys and Girls club while putting an entire city's fanbase on its deathbed. Its downright diabolical, dastardly, daring, yet...kinda live at the same time.
The reason why the man is number one on this list is because regardless of what all the pundits, prognosticators, fans, bloggers, and you or I personally thought he SHOULD do...he did what he wanted to do. He never wavered, he never gave this "decision" a second-thought, and he even told us so on December 2nd.
"If you want to improve, be content to be thought foolish and stupid." ~ Epictetus
Let's improve people, regardless of how foolish and stupid people think you are. Have a happy new year and let's bring in 2011 right. Godspeed.
-Ed.
www.edthesportsfan.com
P.S. As a reminder, checkout the livest sports talk (and hopefully on the radio soon) show around, "The Unsportsmanlike Conduct Show" as we are live Wednesday's at 9pm Eastern at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/edthesportsfan! Download our podcasts if you missed the live show as well!
Comments
6 Responses to "The Five Coolest of 2010: #1 - LeBron James"This is what I was afraid of. LeBron is still incredible, but he lost any cool he ever had with "The Decision." You lost me on this one guys.
@Rev - We won you over yesterday then we lost you today lol...We knew this could happen, but if we as fans could take emotion out of it, the wa the man has carried "it" and himself during the last year has been impeccable.
-Ed.
Rev, once the totality of what he has done is taken into the equation, he has to be number one.
Did you see his interview with Sager after the Cavs game? Sager asked him if he wanted to apologize to the fans, and LeBron straight-up said "no." The man has embraced The Villain Role that many folks have wanted him to do so for years.
aaaaand this is where i get off the train.
i am pretty prejudiced since The Decision completely turned me off. but that being said, there was NOTHING cool about the way LeBron started this season. his numbers weren't impressive and he really didn't become a dominant, contributing member to the team until he met with his former team in Cleveland. it wasn't until that game where LeBron emerged as the player he was on the Cavs. sure, adversity has fueled the fire lighting his game, but up until that point he was anything but cool--more like a complaining, bitching & moaning diva who blamed everyone (i.e. the coach) but him for his inability to produce in stellar fashion.
*shrugs* i guess there's nothing he could do really to regain my approval. and quite frankly he doesn't need it. looks like he's just fine without it :)
No. 5 at best. Ha. Love the debate though. Happy New Year!
"Now I understand that some of you saw the photo above, read the title, and was like...these dudes have lost their got damned minds." Why yes Ed...yes I did think you lost your mind. I can kinda get your logic but I was not a fan of the publicity stunt called "The Decision." Sure that's not all on Mr. James because the NBA and ESPN practically sold their first born to get their cut of this publicity stunt but on Mr. James had control of to do it or not just like he had control of where he would like to play. I don't think this makes him the number one sports story of the year but it is Ed the Sports Fan so you're entitled to your opinion...I just don't think such carelessness should be rewarded. I'll end here but I should make clear that I am not upset or frazzled by the decision Mr. James made; frankly I think he needed to go somewhere where all the weight wasn't on his shoulders but I highly disagree with the lack of tact and sensitivity he used in handling the matter but tact probably went out the window when he was the last to know that his mother was the hot cougar for one of his teammates and he was the last to know...still doesn't make it acceptable but a bit more understandable.
Happy New Year!
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