So "The Decision" wasn't exactly LBJ's call

[Flash]

ESPN Book

The Decision About LeBron’s Decision Was An Orgy Of Self-Interest, With Jim Gray On Top

http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/commenter/1480000/1488301_32.jpg Emma Carmichael — There's a brief section about The Decision in Those Guys Have All the Fun, and if the details aren't exactly fresh, the takeaway is somewhat new: Everyone involved was using everyone else for their own ends to produce what amounted to a massive orgy that they all came to regret the next day. And LeBron was just the inflatable [expletive] toy in the middle of it all. So to speak.

 

Gray explains in the book that the idea was born at Game 2 of the L.A.-Boston finals, when he spoke to Maverick Carter, CEO of James's marketing company, and talent agent Ari Emanuel. Gray asked Carter if he could have the first interview with James after he had made The Decision, which at that point was still just a decision. Carter agreed, and Gray's idea soon took another form:

 

JIM GRAY:

...by the end of the conversation, I said, 'Better yet, Maverick, why don't we do this: Why don't we go buy an hour of network time, you produce the show, you own the show, I get to do the interview, and you have LeBron make the announcement of where he's going to go.' Before I got the last three words out of my mouth, Ari said, 'That's a brilliant idea. That's unbelievable. Maverick, you ought to do that!' Then Maverick looked at Ari and said, ‘Okay. You want to handle it?' Ari said, ‘Yeah, that's great, let's do this.'

Maverick then said, 'You know what, we can raise a bunch of money for charity, so that no one will think LeBron is going to profit from this.'

Then Maverick told me to stay in touch with him, And Ari, and that was that.

 

Gray was using Carter for access to his client, who in turn was using Emanuel for access and logistics. Emanuel was using both to get close to a superstar athlete and, as the Los Angeles Times put it, "poke a finger in the eye of a rival agency," Creative Artists Agency (which counts LeBron as a client). ESPN would ultimately use everyone to bring about what Gray calls in the book "the highest-rated studio show in the history of their network."

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Deadspin

 

Interesting read to say the least.

[kingfish]

"Should I stop listenin to my frands? Dey my frands."

[Clutch]

man at the end of the day he went out and did it - he apologized, he knows it was effed up, everyone knows...the chairty whether intention was pure or not, good for the boys and girls club....lets move on from this man

[Flash]

BTW, that ESPN book is going to be awesome to read.

[fish7718]

Not interesting at all, and still doesn't change anything lol

[Lkr]

BTW, that ESPN book is going to be awesome to read.

the book as a whole looks awesome. as for this, LeBron doesn't have to do what all of these guys say. His whole posse would be out of work without him

[Hawks Fly High]

It wasn't his call............. maybe it wasn't his idea, but he had the right to say no because it wouldn't have been morally correct. His friends are just trying to cover his ass up right now. It was wrong and everyone's gotten over it except the bitter Cleveland fans.