LeBron James' The Decision drove NBA players to take charge of free agency media-wise

LeBron James is widely regarded as one of best players to ever play for Cleveland Cavaliers. He controversially left in 2010 to join Miami Heat, where he won two back-to-back championships. LeBron n returned to Cavaliers in 2014, leing m to ir maiden NBA title in 2016. While w-Lakers star might arguably be among top 10 players in NBA history, LeBron James'  Decision temporarily me him a villain in eyes of fans, especially supporters of Cavs.

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LeBron James Decision: Backstory of Decision

LeBron James became an unrestricted free nt on July 1, 2010, after playing seven seasons with Cavaliers. A hot property ahe of 2010/11 season, LeBron reportedly h offers from likes of Chicago Bulls, Los Angeles Clippers, New York Knicks and even Cavaliers. Ditching tritional method of just signing a new deal with a different franchise, LeBron James free ncy saga was concluded by him on live television as he anunced his next team on a show titled as Decision. television special programme was brocasted live on ESPN. 

LeBron James'  Decision revealed that former . 1 overall pick would be taking his talents to Miami Heat, a side which h just anunced acquisition of fellow free nts Dwyane We and Chris Bosh. On plus side, programme raised a reported $2.5 million for charity and an ditional $3.5 million through vertisements, which was also donated to various charities. On negative side, LeBron James was heavily criticised for turning sports into a reality show and was even accused of trying to keep spotlight on him.

LeBron James' Decision was slammed by experts and fans alike who labelled programme as unnecessary. LeBron was even branded 'unprofessional' by media. 

While LeBron James risked his NBA legacy with  Decision, move turned out to fruitful for power forward as he won two NBA titles with Miami Heat, establishing himself as one of greatest in NBA history. He n went onto redeem himself with Cavaliers faithful as he rejoined franchise in 2014 and led m to an NBA title. He left Cavaliers for second time in 2018 to join LA Lakers. 

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LeBron James free ncy saga was explored in latest episode of ESPN's 30 for 30 documentary series. While LeBron James' NBA career panned out fine after infamous summer of 2010, it is worth ting that LeBron James' Decision was also an important moment for players entering free ncy in NBA. As per experts, Decision was influential in taking reins of free ncy from NBA teams and handing m to players. Despite controversial reaction, experts believe LeBron James stood for himself during saga and chose to dictate his story rar than be a puppet for ar free ncy scramble between teams. 

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Since LeBron James' Decision, high profile players like Kevin Durant and Gordon Hayward used similar (although t on such a bro scale) means to anunce ir free-nt moves. Durant and Hayward, both used first-person essays to anunce ir next moves to Golden State Warriors and Boston Celtics respectively. Or players t having mainstream appeal like LeBron or Durant, have used small scale measures to anunce ir moves.

In today's , social media has been a key platform for players to anunce ir next move. While LeBron might have taken it too far with Decision, it surely drove a new generation of players to take charge of ir free ncy sagas. 

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(Im Credits: NBA Official Website)