LeBron James returning to Cleveland reminds me of Robin Hood

LeBron James salutes Miami as he announced he will be heading back to Cleveland, where he played his first six years of his NBA career

LeBron James returning to his home state of Ohio was the only move that made sense. He was born in Akron, played for Cleveland for six years, and gave the community hope. Returning only restores the hope that he created 11 years ago and dissolved four years ago.

James didn’t leave Cleveland on a white horse riding off into the sunset. Have you seen the movie “Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves”? In the beginning of the movie, Robin of Locksley (played by Kevin Costner) joined King Richard the “Lionheart” in his crusade. Robin breaks out of a prison in Jerusalem in the middle of night. He fought many guards and then hid from them, before he was able to escape. Robin made a promise to Peter, Robin’s comrade, that he would protect his sister, Marian. Peter then dies.

Robin then travels back to his home, in England, to find his dad burned to death by the Sheriff of Nottingham. Robin becomes an outlaw, trying to live among the “forest people”. Robin encounters the character of Will Scarlet, who lashes out against Robin, showing him his true feelings about him and telling him what he thinks about him. Eventually, Robin finds out that Scarlet is his illegitimate half-brother. Robin’s anger toward his father forced him to separate from Will’s mother, leaving Will helpless and father-less in his younger days.

And, as we all know it, Robin Hood helps the “forest people” or “Merry Men” take back England, restoring the power back to its original form. Robin marries Marian before King Richard, and everyone lives happily ever after.

That’s what James is doing. Not only is he returning home, but he is helping out the city that helped shape him as a young man. Even though he isn’t from Cleveland, Akron is 44 miles away. James is playing the role of Robin Hood and King Richard. But first, he will have to be Robin Hood.

The Cavaliers have been awful and the city of Cleveland has never been the same since James left in 2010. Robin Hood took blame midway through the movie because he was putting innocent people at risk and getting some of them killed by the Sheriff’s men. Here is that scene courtesy of Robert G and YouTube.

If that doesn’t get you pumped up for battle, I don’t know what to say to you.

They have been in the lottery all four years, including three #1 picks. In a way, it’s a band of misfits; like the “forest people”. Kyrie Irving has shown flashes of semi-goodness, but has done little in his first three seasons. Anthony Bennett had the worst rookie season of all of time. Dion Waiters is enigmatic. Tristan Thompson, like Irving, has shown flashes but is still underwhelming. And who knows how Andrew Wiggins will turn out or if he will even be on the roster (trade rumors). I’m just glad that Anderson Varejao is still alive. Carrick Felix, Joe Harris, Matthew Dellavedova, Alonzo Gee, and Scotty Hopson(?) are a strange cast of players lucky enough to hold a roster spot.

Of course, the roster figures to change now that James is back. Robin Hood had a friend that he freed in the prison in Jerusalem and traveled with him to England. His name was Azeem. Azeem was a wise-man, who had extreme amounts of experience in fighting and potion-making. And, yes of course, Morgan Freeman played the character, and played it brilliantly. So might Ray Allen head with James to Cleveland? It’s a great possibility. Along the way Robin met a big man, Little John. John gave himself the title “Best Man of the Woods”, because he was the biggest, toughest, and best “quarterstaff” fighter in England (a quarterstaff is a wooden pole that was used as a weapon and would usually have a blade at one end). Might Kevin Love be that guy who ends up in Cleveland via a trade? Love is the one the best shooters and rebounders in the NBA.

No matter how the dominoes fall, James will certainly have his work cut-out for him in Cleveland. He realized how tough it was to win a NBA championship playing with two other really good players playing beside him. Now that he is on an even younger team, with only one player (Varejao) having any playoff experience at all, it’s going to be extremely tough for even a “king” to take this team to the top.

James never ruled out a return to Cleveland. While he made mistakes about how he left, he always said Cleveland will be in his heart.

And now James’ legacy will be made in Cleveland. It’s time for him to transform from Robin Hood back to King Richard, in a sense.

This will be his last test.