During the 4th quarter of Game
6 on Tuesday night, twitter was all abuzz as we watched LeBron James lead the
Heat to a comeback against the Spurs. Yes, LeBron was attacking the way we’d
been asking him to for weeks, something that seemed to come arbitrarily. Yes,
Tony Parker countered every score a feat of his own, refusing to submit to
Miami’s will. And, yes, Ray Allen would eventually hit a game-tying three
pointer to send the game into overtime. Despite all of this, the true focus of
our captivation was LeBron’s headband, and the lack thereof.
In an unthinkable move, LeBron shed
his headband in the final quarter of that now legendary game. A spot of context
here, James had 14 points going into the fourth quarter. In anticipation of
this matchup, with Miami’s elimination on the line, the world was expecting an
all-out, fire-breathing, LeBron James Destroyer of Worlds performance from the
man known as the King. I think we can all agree that 14 points in three
quarters isn’t exactly what we had in mind. The usual narrative resumed, “is
LeBron over-rated?” “Is He afraid of big moments?” it was 2011 all over again.
Enter: LeBron’s headband. Or rather,
exit. It seemed as though some sleeper cell, placed in James’ blood stream long
ago by some ancient power, activated itself once the final 12-minute period
began. All his power, his athletic ability, his sheer force of will showed
itself. But something else came too: LeBron’s self-confidence. Think with me
here. In his first Finals appearance with Miami, LeBron all but disappeared. He
turned in a nine-point performance, and the Heat fell in six. The millions of
LeBron haters (and that’s just in Cleveland) rejoiced, questioning his
clutchness (clutchnosity?) and declaring him a fraud who would never win a
ring. And it appeared as though LeBron believed them.
The next year, when the Thunder rose up to
oppose them, it was almost too easy. LeBron, after a 45-point decimation of the
Celtics to turn the tide of that series, led Miami to a five-game victory and
their second (his first) Larry O’ Brien trophy. It was clear that LeBron knew
exactly how good he was. The jokes about him being afraid to take big shots?
Irrelevant. The comments about his ring-less existence? Non-existent. But his
headband? Still there. As their material disappeared, those who sought to put
down LeBron all focused on one target, his receding hairline. Now, it’s not as
if headbands are uncommon in the NBA, but with James one can’t help but wonder
if his represents something more.
So now, in 2013, we were blessed with
a season of LeBron James doing what he does best, destroying worlds. And we
loved it. And we loved him. Then in the playoffs, we got scared. Was the Death
Star about to explode? Was this Wizard of Oz just smoke and mirrors? Will I ever
stop using horrible movie analogies? By the time Game 7 of the Pacers series
rolled around, we were all convinced that LeBron had gone back to his timid
ways. Suddenly, the Heat went from an unstoppable force to something that could
be easily broken down and dissected. The LeBron criticism resumed. The headband
was still there. The hairline jokes came stronger than ever.
So that’s why, when LeBron decided to
bare his receding hairline during Game 6, we were all so shocked. How could
this be?? The headband was the one constant, one thing that was consistent about
James even as he refined and perfected his game. Did we all see LeBron shed his
final insecurity? Was the headband holding back some celestial power that he
was afraid to unleash, like Cyclopes’ visor? Can we expect to see him
controlling the elements during Game 7? Even if the headband-less display of
might was just a coincidence, you have to wonder if LeBron is finally believing
what we already know: that he is, undisputedly, the best basketball player on
God’s green earth, and I’m assuming the rest of the universe. So now the big
question, will the headband return in Game 7? And if it does, will it limit
what LeBron can accomplish? I can’t wait to find out!
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