Lebron James: The Tragic Hero

"You either die a hero, or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain." - Harvey Dent

You love him, or you hate him. There is no in-between. Lebron James, one of the most polarizing figures in the NBA, is my definition of a tragic hero.

Once upon a time, Lebron James was one of the most well liked athletes in the entire world. He was the darling of the media, the hometown hero, and anything he did was the trend of the NBA. He had it all. He had the skill, the accolades, the fans, the endorsements, the fame. Then one event changed his life...

The minute that changed it all...

It was like the world paused for a second, just to take in what just occurred. Then chaos. The burning of his jersey (something I've never seen happen,) the relentless criticism of the media, and everything else that followed. I've never seen a player fall from grace so fast (for something that wasn't illegal.)

The downfall of his popularity is almost unimaginable. If you look at it, its quite sad. Lebron has now become almost a punchline, and here are a few reasons why:

Lebron One-Liners - There is a page with nothing but jokes about Lebron.

Youtube - There are videos that Lebron is not even mentioned, yet people say things like "Lebron traveled", "Lebron sucks", etc etc.

His own hate site - It's pretty funny that Adolf Hitler or Joseph Stalin don't have hate sites, but Lebron does.

Now, I'm not going to list the reasons why and why not we should hate Mr. James. I'm also not here to defend Lebron. I am going to say the facts. Lebron was the NBA's most popular icon. Lebron switched teams. Lebron is now the most hated player of all of basketball outside of Miami. That change is position is why I believe he is a tragic hero.

Now, I've read an article on The Bleacher Report that inspired me to write this. You hate on Lebron all you want, but remember, you created this monster. You built him up on a pedestal so high that the only thing he can do is fall. Read the article here.