LeBron James decision could backfire on NBA business

In what he claims to be a move to a contender, LeBron James has abandoned the Cleveland Cavaliers in favor of the Miami Heat. The free agent deal will team “King” James with noted stars Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh and give head coach Pat Riley yet another opportunity to show why he’s one of the greatest motivators in NBA history. This spells big business for the Heat and Miami and a proverbial kick to the shins for the Cavaliers and Cleveland, but as Bloomberg and other media outlets speculate, is the LeBron James deal actually bad for the NBA?

Resource for this article: LeBron James decision could backfire on NBA business by Personal Money Store

LeBron James on a Heat super-team is bad for broadcasting

The NBA has contracts with networks (ESPN, ABC, Turner), and all of them are no doubt looking forward to big Miami Heat ratings in 2010-11. That’s great when the Miami Heat plays, but hurts the rest of the league. This also applies to ticket sales. David Stern would love to say that parity is great for everyone, but the truth is that more people care to see games with stars like LeBron James. As previous CBS Sports President Neal Pilson told Bloomberg, “You can’t just show Miami all the time and certainly the TV carriers benefit when you have attractive stars and personalities on multiple teams”.

Interestingly, if LeBron James had signed with the New York Knicks (a team that was within the running), it would are broadcasting and marketing serendipity. Per Nielsen numbers, New York, Los Angeles and Chicago are the top 3 U.S. TV markets. Miami clocks in at number 17.

‘The Decision’ – Milking it for all it’s worth

ESPN and online sources aired the ridiculous online program “The Decision,” in which LeBron James and posse make a foregone conclusion seem like a deep personal struggle. Lots of sponsorship money changed hands, from the University of Phoenix and Microsoft to Coca-Cola and McDonald’s, all for a made for the shallow sports world event, writes Bloomberg. LeBron James’ “The Decision” was back scratching for him, but it also sent $2.5 million to the Boys and Girls Clubs of America.

What if the Heat fizzle?

Cleveland and Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert will no doubt be happy. The Cleveland newspaper The Plain Dealer ran a full front page photo published a picture of LeBron James walking away from the camera, accompanied by the headline “Gone” and a subhead that mocks the “King’s” lack of NBA Championship rings. The mood in Cleveland must not be high, if Dan Gilbert calls a press conference for the purpose of calling James a “shockingly disloyal” narcissist. Dan Gilbert sees a curse surrounding LeBron James, and insists the Cavs will win a ring before the turncoat James ever will. Clearly, “King” James should have something to prove.

Check out this stuff

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-07-09/lebron-james-on-super-team-might-be-good-for-miamiheat-bad-for-the-nba.html

http://trueslant.com/level/2010/07/09/cleveland-plain-dealers-front-page-parting-short-to-lebron-james/