Good morning FD. I watched the NBA finals. Can't speak to the Pauls...but I watched the alleged greatest of all time LeBron. I will never... even if his performance is off the charts until he retires....pay anymore attention to his alleged greatness or watch him unless he is going up against the Warriors and the person he is supposed to be overshadowing....The Baby Faced Assassin, Steph Curry. . His lackluster performance, lack of hustle, constant preening and need to bask in the adoration of that audience without being able to deliver.....guarantees for me that I will only watch him to see him lose. His performance hit me so hard I had to go back and watch the entire Warriors vs Rockets semi finals (and truly exciting it was) to wipe the bad taste out of my mouth I got watching the alleged finals.

I stopped watching pro football in the 80's and defaulted to college football because there was a love for the game the college boys had that was undiminished as opposed to their pro counterparts. It was clear and evident to me. That died in the 90's where I stopped watching them too. The corporate sponsorship culture began bleeding into the gameplay.
My fav player of all time is Julius Erving aka Dr. J. No man embodied the sport as he did. I followed him when I used to listen to the ABA games broadcast on AM radio right through to his last year in the NBA.....from the Nets to the 76'ers. When he retired I stopped watching ball games.
I am a New Yorker FD. So it will not shock you to hear I got caught up in Linsanity and Jeremy Lin's effect on basketball here in the big apple. Here was a player who knew and whose behaviour harkened back to an era where the team was integral to playing and winning games... not the individual with a cape and bright red boots. I loved watching him and I actually thought about getting seasons tickets. Then they traded him. And the bubble popped.

So I tuned in the following years to watch the Mavericks take the title, then the Spurs (now there's team spirit with no preening) and finally The rise of the Warriors. Team play as a juggernaut. And three titles against whomever. But I only tune in to the end of the season.
But there is one thing I left out FD. Don't care about contracts. The Pauls. LeBron. You do know the one thing I get. That's team play. But still there is one thing I didn't tell you. I watched the GOAT LeBron...miss a layup. No one around. No one to contest the greatest player that ever lived...allegedly. A layup. In a championship game. In the NBA finals. I watched him closely for the next 20 or so minutes or so. Then I felt the switch turn inside me. Same switch that turned when I heard they had traded Jeremy. Same switch when Julius retired. Same switch that turned when I knew I had watched my last pro football game. No more joining in on discussions measuring him against Kobe or Jordan. No watching Lebron compilations on youtube. No season tickets for basketball. If this is what passes for greatness...I will not spend money to further this farce. Nope. No way.
It will always be a joy to watch Steph, Jeremy Lin, Dr. J...Coby and so many others especially in youtube compilations. To the Pauls, King James...no thanks...but may all the money you seek come your way. For those who think these guys are the greatest things since sliced bread...knock yourselves out. There is one thing I can guarantee you will not see in an NBA arena. Me.

Greetings to you Fruit Daddy. Consider me...inspired. Peace and blessings be upon you and yours.

all pics courtesy of shutterstock and pixabay....