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So the villain has been vanquished. The Miami Heat, the bad guys in black and red, were defeated on their home court by the heroes from Dallas, forcing fair-weather Heat fans off the bandwagon and back to the beach and wherever else they came from.

Where does their loss leave LeBron James, the goat, the man who people say has brought all the hate of the past year upon himself? 

Rarely have we seen an athlete do a 180 in the court of public opinion the way LeBron James has. Tiger Woods is going through it. Kobe had his moment but winning has, for the most part, cured what ailed his public image after his exploits in Colorado. Will that be what it ultimately takes for LeBron to walk back into our collective good graces? Only time will tell.

As a nation, we watched the LeBron Hate Fest 2011 spiral out of control and after witnessing the fall of “The King” I feel the need to play devil’s advocate. Does LeBron really deserve all the hate we’ve rained down upon him for the past 11 and a half months?

Let’s take a look at some of the reasons why LeBron is in the dog house and try to make sense of all of this on the next few pages.

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The Decision

From the moment LeBron ripped off his Cleveland Cavaliers jersey after being bounced from the playoffs, the writing was on the wall. But Cleveland Cavs fans held out hope in part because LeBron is from Akron, Ohio.

How could he leave his hometown? The media circus surrounding whether or not he was leaving was incredible, so what does LeBron and his team decide to do? Hold an epically grandiose and self-serving TV special called “The Decision” in which he tore the hearts out of Cleveland fans by announcing “this Fall I’m gonna take my talents to South Beach and join the Miami Heat.” How and why could he do that?

Let’s all agree that “The Decision” was a horribly bad decision. But while it was crazy dumb, it was not meant to be malicious. Also, the money made from “The Decision” went to the Boys & Girls Clubs of America. I just think LeBron watched “He Got Game” one too many times and thought that kind of show was what people wanted.

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Yes We DID!

When LeBron made it official that he was taking his talents to South Beach, the Miami Heat organization arranged a spectacle that was way over the top in celebration of bringing “The King” to Miami. The celebration, titled “Yes We DID,” borrowed from Pres. Obama’s campaign slogan and ticked off not only the people in Cleveland but America as a whole. WTF, LBJ!?

Yeah it was messed up, but we doubt it was LeBron’s idea to throw a crazy party with fireworks etc. for his arrival. The city of Miami and the Heat were excited to land the year’s top free agent and we all know the city is famous for it’s South Beach clubs and wild parties. They do it real big in Miami so should we really be surprised that it went down this way?

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The Enigmatic Hairline

Now this one is just a low blow, but he needs to go ahead and shave it like his idol Michael Jordan. Although if he does bust out the Norelco you’ll be hearing the name “Delroy Lindo” and the words “LeBron’s daddy” together a lot.

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“Not 2, not 3, not 4, not 5…”

LeBron will forever take heat for an answer he gave during an interview at the Yes We Did celebration in front of hundreds of Heat fans. LeBron said he, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh have their sights set on multiple championships in Miami before having even played a game for the Heat. How arrogant!

While many around the world saw it as a prediction, LeBron never predicted anything. He said “we believe we can win multiple championships if we take care of business and do it the right way.” Besides that, who wouldn’t want one of their star players to have big aspirations? While LeBron has done a lot of questionable things, this is not one of them.

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Baby ‘Bron Needs Help

LeCritics hammer LeBron for joining a rival’s team as opposed to doing it on his own like Michael Jordan did. Well even the best to ever do it had help in the form of Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman among others. Also, Dwyane Wade is far from a rival and was in fact one of LeBron’s closest friends prior to his move to Miami. Let’s be honest, who wouldn’t want to play ball with their boy and hang out with the crew on South Beach on off days?

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The Next MJ… No Way!

LeBron haters, NBA analysts and LeBron fans alike are disappointed in James for not living up to his talent level. He’s seen by many as far more arrogant than his resume should allow since he hasn’t won and has a history of failing to deliver when it counts most.

While it’s true that LeBron hasn’t won a damn thing, he is only 26 years old and has many years ahead of him to work on his game. Jordan himself struggled for years before finally winning a title in ’91 at 28 years of age. Also, we don’t like to hear it, but LeBron James doesn’t owe us a thing. If he never lives up to the hype it’ll be worse for him than for anyone else.

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The Disney Kid Conundrum

Probably the biggest reason why folks hate LeBron is because he just doesn’t seem to get it. After LeBron’s latest gaffe about his critics having to get back to the reality of their lives (and we assume he meant lives that aren’t as great as his), the chorus on this complaint is louder than ever. Why not just apologize for everything, admit defeat and humble yourself, LeBron?

This one is hard to defend. However, LeBron has apologized for his comments and for The Decision and while it’s fun to root for perceived jerks, the joy some took in his failure was a little over the top. He hasn’t broken any laws. He hasn’t killed any dogs, cheated on a wife, had a lovechild or shot himself in the leg by accident. After surviving the media spotlight since junior high school without any real personal or legal problems, becoming one of the best players in the NBA and still facing such intense criticism it’s no wonder he’s defensive. It’s not an excuse for him acting stupid and wildly out of touch, but try and see things from his perspective.

Yeah he has millions, but money can’t buy back the peace and happiness he enjoyed as America’s favorite athlete.