LeBron James was used as a huge punching bag at the 2010 ESPY awards. He was booed, ridiculed and mocked for his one-hour special on ESPN last week.
ESPY host Seth Meyers was the first to taunt James by going after him in his opening monologue.
“Did it really need to be an hour?” Meyers asked the crowd. “Somebody time me. Miami. How long did that take? A second.”
Meyers then went after James’ failure to become an NBA champion by saying, “Literally, every team that has ever won an NBA championship has done it without LeBron James.”
Shortly after Meyers finished his opening monologue, comedians Steve Carrell and Paul Rudd spoofed “The Decision” in a previously taped video.
Carrell and Rudd sat face-to-face as Carrell discussed how he used the Magic 8-Ball (a toy), to make his decision. After a few moments of dry banter, Carrell told Rudd that he was leaving Chili’s to eat at Outback Steakhouse.
Fans at the Espy also booed James after he was announced as the winner of the Best Male Athlete award.
But ESPN should be the last media outlet to take shots at James. Although “The Decision” was viewed as a narcissistic move on James’ part, it was a hit in the TV ratings.
The show drew 10 million viewers and was the highest-rated broadcast program that night. It was also ESPN’s highest overnight non-NFL program in 2010.
James had the choice to take the show to other major outlets such as CNN, NBC, Fox, NBA TV, or even TV One or BET. ESPN lucked out by being a part of “The Decision.” The station should have shown more appreciation instead of using the ESPY Awards as a platform to tear James down. –amir shaw
