06/22 (LeBron) Quickie

I said what I needed to say just after the game last night in the post below.

But I woke up still thinking about that amazing quote from LeBron: "It's about damn time."

There are very few iconic quotes in NBA history. Plenty of iconic moments -- very few iconic quotes. I think LeBron's instantly joins the short list, because it is so pithy yet so profound. It expresses enthusiasm and frustration and joy and arrogance and relief, all in one sentiment.

I think it's how the rest of us feel, too. Maybe that's it: What he said reflects what we're all thinking, so I'm glad he said it -- it means we didn't have to. LeBron and fans and critics, we could all exhale together.

Now, LeBron is a champion. You can't ever take that away from him -- whether he wins multiple rings (still an expectation he can fall short of) or just the one (honestly? unlikely.)

It is a grand tradition of sports fandom that "champion" trumps almost everything. LeBron has a lot of career left -- and probably a ring or two left -- but I think it is fair to say that "champ" bumps "Decision" from the defining moment of his career. As it should be (says even the hater).

But LeBron has done more than become a champ. He has shown the fortitude -- no, the jaw-dropping excellence -- combined with the requisite joy that makes him impossible not to respect.

It's about damn time.

-- D.S.