Cleveland Cavaliers: How I became a fan of LeBron James

Cleveland Cavaliers superstar LeBron James is clearly one of the more polarizing NBA players in recent history. Here is why I turned from hater to fan.

I first felt a positive emotion towards LeBron James in Game 4 of the 2015 Eastern Conference semifinals.

With my beloved Chicago Bulls up a game on the Cleveland Cavaliers and leading by double figures, James acrobatically sprung towards the basket before awkwardly landing on his left leg.

He crumbled to the hardwood, clutching his knee in agony. In that moment I was torn between two emotions; uncomfortable optimism about the Bulls actually beating James for once, and empathy for the fallen prodigal son attempting to glorify his home city.

After hobbling to the bench, LeBron was magically rejuvenated in the fourth quarter, drilled a game-winning buzzer beater and essentially ended the Bulls’ best shot at an Eastern Conference title since the Michael Jordan days. All the negative feelings — jealously, disdain — returned.

The second time I felt a positive emotion for James was when he led the city of Cleveland to its first championship since 1964. The Chicago Cubs fan in me empathized with the Cavs faithful as their team battled back from elimination to force a Game 7.

So when James catapulted Andre Iguodala’s layup off the bank board so hard it made Lake Erie ripple, I cheered. When the horn sounded and Cavs fans danced, I celebrated with them.

The memories of James pummeling the Bulls with game-winners and playoff triple-doubles dissipated. Vicariously I felt their pride, until he did this during the World Series.

Why did I hate LeBron James in the first place? My excuse, like so many, was that he was a “flopper.” James regularly turned slight nudges into Oscar-worthy performances. At one point, he even justified his theatrics as good basketball.

Then there was “The Decision.” When James joined Chis Bosh and comfort blanket Dwyane Wade, boisterously claiming they’d win “not one, not two, not three” titles while Clevelanders chewed their fingernails watching a $500 million commodity depart, I seethed with anger.

How could he do this? How could he just uproot from his blue-collar, Midwestern city for the lavish lifestyle of South Beach without so much as an apology? I took it at as a personal attack, justifying my hatred.

They aren’t legitimate reasons to hate LeBron James so freaking much. They are facades for something deeper. I dislike Rajon Rondo and Draymond Green because they play dirty, Kyrie Irving because I believe he is overrated and Matt Barnes because he’s so… Matt Barnes.

But LeBron has always been genuine off the court and entertaining (understatement of the century) on it, making him a terrific ambassador for basketball. He’s lived up to impossible expectations while being cascaded with criticism. He also may have executed history’s greatest photo bomb.

So why the hate? Maybe for me, it is insecurity. I am insecure about change brought on by LeBron with his accidental efforts to turn the NBA into a super-team driven, position-less league. I am insecure about the thought of James dominating the league for another five years. I am insecure about the possibility that James might actually be better than Michael Jordan (for record, I don’t think he is yet and here is why).

James challenged a childhood memory; Jordan was an untouchable, basketball god. James being better than MJ is a crippling blow to a core belief, one enriched deep in my psyche since a young age.

This insecurity manifested in the form of animosity towards James. For years I’d only “hate watch” the world’s best athlete, like how most boyfriends watch The Bachelor or our president watches CNN.