During this new era of load management, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver had enacted a new rule of players needing to play at least 65 games in order to receive regular season awards.
It's sad that it has come to this, but there are still players that have taken a rest day here or there... The most recent one has caused quite a stir. Not because he took a rest day "per se", but who it was against.
LeBron James recently took a rest day against the Lakers' all-time arch rival Boston Celtics, in Boston. James rarely takes any rest days. As a matter of fact, he's been one of the most reliable players in today's NBA, even with back to back games and ESPECIALLY marquee games. James is such a basketball historian who understands the history of the game and he knows the importance of the Lakers/Celtics rivalry, who only play one another twice a year during the regular season.
There was no back-to-back here, so that can't be an excuse. This is the second game of an east coast road trip, so it's not like they're playing at the tail end of a long east coast trip. That too can't be used as an excuse of not playing in Boston.
If I had to bet money on it, I know the excuse why... and I'm pretty sure LeBron will not admit to it, but "theeee" excuse I believe it is, would be worse than saying it's simply a rest day...
If you remember, last season at Boston, James was fouled down the stretch of a tight game vs the C's and there was a no call that sent the game into OT, in which the Celtics eventually won. LeBron was very animated about the no call. So much so, it looked like a three year-old having a temper tantrum because he didn't get what he wanted. James recently brought up that sequence and no call again, prior to the trip to Boston. So it obviously still bothers him.
I have a serious hunch that LeBron felt the urge for a get back for that no call last January in Boston. His get back???.... Do not play in Boston. A "protest" in a sense, to last year's no call in Boston. You may say, no way!!! But LeBron can be petty, passive-aggressive and he is great at getting his way and the laugh last, "so to speak", one way or another.
James also knows the influence of his presence, not just on the court, but off of the court. Without James on the court, it will obviously put a dent in the viewership numbers. As far as on court, not playing, James would love to shove it in the Boston fans faces. Many fans were looking forward to seeing LeBron, being that he only appears in Boston once a year. James would love to get a "one up", especially after all of the jeers during last year's "no call" game. Yea, that's petty....
Simply put, this was not a rest game, it was a protest game.
The Odd Couple talks about the significance of LeBron's rest day in Boston
Comments