We could all use a second chance

Disbelief.
That’s the best way to describe the feeling.
LeBron James is coming back to Cleveland.
Unbelievable.
I was angry when James decided to “take his talents to South Beach.” And I stayed angry.
I have written in this space before that I had forgiven James for the pain he caused Cleveland, but that’s been easier to say than do.
It’s still been difficult for me to stomach watching the Miami Heat play with James in uniform (unless, of course, it was in losing NBA Finals efforts to the Dallas Mavericks in 2011 or the San Antonio Spurs last month). When commercials featuring the four-time MVP came on the screen, I cringed. When SportsCenter segments about the Heat began to air, I changed the channel.
And I remained one of the many Cleveland fans who said I didn’t want LeBron James back.
He could stay in Miami, I insisted.
Or he could leave the Sunshine State for New York or L.A.
He could go to any NBA team. I just didn’t want him with the Cavaliers.
But when James opted out of his Heat contract a few weeks ago, I had to admit something to myself.
On one hand, I remained the spurned sports fan, still angry, still bitter, still insistent Cleveland could reach championship heights without James, in spite of him. On the other hand, he’s the best player in the world.
So I started to wonder about the possibility of his return, long though the odds might have seemed. And as time went by and indications started to point to the Cavaliers as a real option, my stance softened more and more.
I’ve been a Cleveland sports fan for nearly 30 years. All I’ve ever wanted on that front is for one of my teams to win a title. (The city’s last came with the Browns in 1964, before the Super Bowl even existed.)
For most of my life, I watched my teams be second-best, at best. The Cavaliers were victimized by Michael Jordan’s Bulls, the Browns by John Elway’s Broncos, the Indians by Mariano Rivera’s Yankees.
So when James became the league MVP in Cleveland, the feeling was surreal. All of the sudden, the best guy was on our side.
Championships seemed a foregone conclusion. But they never came.
And then the guy who was supposed to lead the Cavaliers to glory instead decided to bail.
It seemed like the easy way out, orchestrating a partnership with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh in Miami. Fans felt they had been stabbed in the back, on national television.
So when I heard the news of James’ choice Friday morning, it was difficult to express my thoughts.
I didn’t read the letter to Sports Illustrated right away, and I avoided all media coverage Friday. But I had left the TV on at home and when I walked in after work early Saturday morning I saw about 30 seconds of a SportsCenter segment that showed LeBron’s Cleveland highlights while playing a Skylar Grey song:
A LeBron dunk …
“I’m coming home, I’m coming home, tell the world I’m coming home.”
… a track-down block …
“Let the rain wash away all the pain of yesterday.”
… jumping into the arms of Zydrunas Ilagauskas …
“I know my kingdom awaits, and they’ve forgiven my mistakes.”
… walking off the court, both arms raise in victory.
“I’m coming home, I’m coming home, tell the world I’m coming home.”
My heart was pounding, skin tingling, as those memories, and so many more, came rushing back.
Just thinking about “The Decision” still makes me ill. I still wish it had never happened. I believe it was the wrong thing for James to do.
But we’ve all made decisions we’ve regretted at some time or another, whether it be ending a relationship, choosing the wrong school or leaving a job.
Sometimes we’re left to wonder what might have been. If we’re lucky, we get a second opportunity.
James is returning to Cleveland, asking its fans to give him that chance.
“My relationship with Northeast Ohio is bigger than basketball,” he said in his letter. “I didn’t realize that four years ago. I do now.”
I didn’t think LeBron James would ever come back to Cleveland.
Now that he has, there are only two words that seem appropriate:
Welcome home.[[In-content Ad]]