Did LeBron James Quit on the Cavs?

Yep, LBJ Quit
By Anthony Jaskulski

Remember that episode from Seinfeld, where George goes to a kids birthday party, sees smoke coming from the kitchen and runs screaming through the apartment, pushing children and clowns out of his way as he flees to safety?

This is precisely what LeBron James did in the final three games of the 2010 Eastern Conference Semifinal round against Boston last month.

LeBron noted the smoldering smoke in Game 2, when the Celtics embarrassed his Cavaliers, 89-73, in front of a booing Quicken Loans Arena crowd in Cleveland.

He gamely battled the Celtics in Game 2, but he was still recovering from an elbow injury he suffered earlier. But if you can call "the chosen one" a 50 percent player in that game, then in Games 5, 6 and 7 he was a complete goose egg.

In those final three games, LeBron went an appalling 18-of-53 from the field, tallied just two 3-pointers in 13 attempts, and committed an absurd 19 turnovers.

Sure, Paul Pierce is a good defender, but he's not that good.

Point being, LeBron James has never scored under 20 points against the defense of Pierce. He nearly did that twice in three games last month.

Still not buying that he quit? Maybe it was the arm?

Well, let's consider some facts. Kobe Bryant played with a broken finger on his shooting hand. Michael Jordan played with a 104 degree-fever in an NBA Finals game. And then there's Willis Reed. Stars play no matter what is wrong. They rise to the occasion and they bring their A-game, regardless of the circumstance.

Yet, with his team and himself squarely backed to the wall of elimination, LeBron came up lame.

He gave up on his sub-par teammates because he knew he wasn't winning any kind of championship with that group. Better to wait for next year, when he'll have a brand new uniform, in a bigger city, with bigger and better teammates.

That's why LeBron channeled his inner-George Costanza and fled the Quicken Loans Arena... for the last time in a Cavaliers' jersey.