Sports | LeBron James LeBron Shows World Everything Wrong With Sports Hour-long ego trip lays bare pointless pastime By Marie Morris Posted Jul 9, 2010 1:20 PM CDT Copied LeBron James answers questions from Jim Gray during an interview on ESPN on Thursday, July 8, 2010, in Greenwich, Conn. James said he's decided to leave the Cleveland Cavaliers for the Miami Heat. (AP Photo/ESPN, Rich Arden) As the news broke that LeBron James will join the Miami Heat, fans whose teams lost out were disappointed, "but mostly they were flabbergasted by the tone deafness of the whole enterprise," Will Leitch writes for New York. Worse, the hour-long display of cluelessness surrounding the announcement exposed a raw nerve: "We've truly seen the ugly, dark heart of sports, and we won't be able to come back." From the format to the content, James' ESPN special hit a symphony of sour notes, including an omission that "was so, so cruel to Cleveland, not once thanking the fans who made him into what he was." Sports fandom is founded on a tacit agreement between athletes and the people who pay their salaries, writes Leitch: "We cheer for athletes because sports does not matter, not really. We trust that they are not laughing at us. That trust felt broken tonight." Read These Next Trumps ends trade talks with Canada. Gavin Newsom has filed a massive lawsuit against Fox News. New York Times ranks the best movies of the 21st century. Supreme Court is a yes on age checks for porn sites. Report an error