Game 6

Game 5 felt like a funeral. It felt like something died in the Q. I'm not sure what died—Game 5, LeBron's career, his career in Cleveland, the Cavs organization, the Cleveland sports scene, the entire city of Cleveland, or just this series against Boston—but something definitely died. It reminded me of the Buckeyes' 2006 National Championship game—before now, the most depressing full game I've ever seen that required a eulogy at its conclusion.

And it depressed me. I felt jarred. I felt like so much ended in those 48 minutes. I actually considered trying not to care as much about sports as a result. What's the point? All I wanted was to just one time witness a championship in Cleveland, and if LeBron can't deliver it, I need to just give up. I hear this American Idol show is pretty consuming. Maybe I'll try that.

I'm not ruling that out, but I've toned the rhetoric down a little bit. I still think the sky is falling, but I'm not going to let that dampen my spirits. The point of watching and caring about this dumb stuff was never really about the championships—afterall, never won one—it's just about the watching and caring itself. My mom helped remind me of this on the phone today.

Me: I really think I'm going to distance myself from this stuff. I mean, that was just terrible.
Mom: Yea, so? That's what happens here. You know that.
Me: ..... Yea, but....

Doesn't matter what I said next. This woman who hardly ever watches one of these damn games was completely right. She knows. She's lived here her whole life in a family of sports fans, wanting these teams to win. We just don't. Why is this different? We get excited and get let down. But we watch. That's just what we do. I'm not letting one crappy, disinterested game dampen the passion I have for my crappy teams.

And just within the last hour, I've decided I'm not going to let that crappy, disinterested game make me walk into Game 6 as a LeBron hater. I kind of wanted to for most of the day. His passive play just made me too mad, sad, depressed and fearful. But it was, admittedly, a little unfair. My true hatred for his play, I think, rested in the whole "LEBRON MIGHT NOT BE HERE NEXT YEAR!! WE HAVE TO WIN NOW!!!" The possibility of LeBron leaving heightened the importance of everything, probably too much.

But I'm turning that around. The "LEBRON MIGHT NOT BE HERE NEXT YEAR!!" means that Game 6 really, honestly might be the very last time we all root for LeBron James. I know Game 5 felt that way, but Game 6 really might be, for real. Think about that. The last seven years of my life were devoted to every step LeBron has taken, and Game 6 may be the last time I even want him to live. It seems inappropriate and sad, as a true Cleveland fan, to not believe in the man at least one last time.

I do think we're going to lose, and I do think he's going to leave this summer, but there's plenty of time to be hateful and bitter when it's all officially over. I know we all look forward to being bitter, but let's just walk into at least one more game as believers of LeBron before we return to our mediocre sports cesspool. He's brought basketball in this city to heights never imagined—no matter how bad and sleepy he looked in Game 5. The least we can do is tell his doubters to Fuck Off one last time before we hate him for life. Right? Who's with me?!

Go Cavs.