Do You Really Care?

Another good article, Kenrick. There has already been alot said of shacking hands and what not so, let's leave it to rest.

Do I really care, Kenrick? My answer would be: ABSOLUTELY!

I appreciate you writing this because it's a very important issue for sports figures in the future. What LeBron did (or I should say, "didn't do") was downright disrespectful to the Magic's players, coaches, and organization. I'm sorry, but the analogy about if someone beats you and you not congratulating them for beating you up is probably the stupidest thing I've heard in a while. Fights and sports contests are two very different things. If LeBron told me this face to face, I'd ask him, "Are you telling me that if Michael Jordan beat you in a 1-on-1 contest, you wouldn't (out of respect) shake his hand for a good matchup between two of the greatest basketball players to ever play the game? If not, then I've lost almost all my respect for you."

I appreciate LeBron for standing up for his beliefs and the excitement he brings in fans' hearts when playing the game, but respect is a big thing in any sports. Not shaking hands after a great series (yes, a GREAT series) is just being a soar loser. I don't care what [a] certain player/s on the opposing team did to piss you off besides win against your team fair and square, but not shaking hands, and then go as far as not going to the press conference, you deserve to be benched; however, it's the end of his season, so, that can't really be done.

It's not a big deal to me. He was upset about a game that went wrong for him. I understand where your coming from, but the Magics dont' care about that. They won the series, that's what they care about!

If LeBron would have won the series, he probably wouldn't have cared either. Not a big deal, he didn't hurt anyone. Nobody felt disrespected!

except the media

LeBron James reputation still remains the same. Nothing changed. Weeks from now this will all be forgotten

Ask yourself these questions:

1.) Does he affect your life?

2.) Have you met him personally?

3.) Is he a close friend or relative of yours?

4.) Do you worship everything he does?

If you answered "No" to every one of those questions, you should have no reason to care what a basketball player says or does unless there's some heinous crime he committed.

I did. A few days ago.

I couldn't agree more SSrepoters. Rawbeezeitz, nobody on the Magics team really felt it was disrespected and thats all that really matters

Knute Rockne once said, "Show me a gracious loser and I'll show you a failure."

I'm not saying I agree with that sentiment completely, but what LeBron did was not without historical precedent. As someone who thinks opposing players pal around too much anyway, I don't mind seeing somebody treat the opponent as what they are -- the enemy, not somebody you can just flip a switch and be friends with again after the buzzer.

Plus, wasn't fitting that he hung Mo Williams and his teammates out to dry after they hung him out to dry all series? Handling the press after Game 6 was the first time they had pulled their weight in weeks!

I believe his reasoning was "HORRIBLE," but besides that I didn't see any problem. Athletes shouldn't rise your children, their parents should!

I understand what your saying, but it doesn't say that in the rule books! Nobody on the Magic felt it was a big deal!

You make a good point Steel Town. Yea that's true Rawbeezeits, that's the reason why it's not a big deal.

Mr. Thomas, I know that this may not be the case, but you sound like someone who's been paid to repeat over and over that "it's not a big deal", "it didn't matter to the Magic", "no one cares", etc. as though to protect someone or something.

You wrote: "Nobody looks forward to watching the players shake hands after the game, and nobody cared except the media."

As you can see from many of the posts here, there ARE people that cared, care and will always care. Including me and many of the people that I've talked to.

I suggest that you write what YOU believe (you are entitled) but don't speak for everyone else.

"Magic's center, Dwight Howard, said he expected James to congratulate him, but he never said he was upset or disappointed."

Just because Dwight Howard didn't SAY he was upset or disappointed, it doesn't mean that he WASN'T. I'm not saying he was, all I'm saying is neither you or I can be 100% certain. I've been upset or disappointed by other people and never said a word about it.

"The Magic didn't care about James walking off the court..."

Again, are you 100% sure no one in the Orlando Magic cared? Did you talk to each player, coach, assistant and everyone that is somehow a part of the team?

"...so why should everyone else care?"

Some of us care because we believe in ideals like honor, respect, class, virtue, and all the great character qualities that make a person chivalrous.

Now, before anyone says that I'm implying that if they don't care about LeBron walking off the court that they don't believe in all those things, I'm not implying that. What I AM saying is that to some of us, it seems like LeBron didn't demonstrate those character traits with his actions after that game.

Bottom line is some people didn't care but some people did and DO care. Everyone's entitled to their opinion and no one should tell anyone else what they should or should not care about.