Nike - LeBron & Kobe Commercial

via YouTube

This commercial is great!!!

First of all, the use of puppets is always money. Secondly, I love how this commercial contrasts LeBron's fun-loving personality and his youthful exuberance with Kobe's poised, mature demeanor.

Although it is annoying seeing a bunch of companies (Vitamin Water, Nike, etc.) hype up a LeBron-Kobe championship that is by no means a given, I think this commercial is correct in highlighting Kobe and LeBron as the two superstars at the top of the NBA right now (D-Wade is just one half step behind them). And despite my loathing of the Shaq-less Lakers and all the annoying minions riding the LA bandwagon, I can't help but be excited by the possibility of Kobe and LeBron - two basketball goliaths - battling in the Finals. It would be an epic contest between the only two Post-Jordan Era players who have been so consistently dominant, brilliant and scintillating on a level above anyone else in the league that they have merited legitimate comparisons to His Airness.

LeBron in particular has transcended greatness this season, elevating his game to "legend" status: he improved in every offensive category (28.4 ppg, 7.6 rpg and 7.2 apg) while decreasing his turnovers and leading leading the Cavaliers to an NBA-best record of 66-16 (39-2 at home!!). But his impressive statistics don't tell the full story because LeBron's biggest impact on his team is the chemistry he has cultivated with his teammates.

Chemistry is an elusive, unquantifiable, yet crucial element that is highly underrated in professional sports. Teams in the modern, free-agent driven era in sports are pressured to win immediately. To this end, teams often spurn the long-term strategy of developing a core of talented young players for the short-term pursuit of a championship. This strategy means trying to land the highest priced players from year to year with complete disregard to how the assembled players will mesh together (see the Dallas Cowboys, New York Yankees, Oakland Raiders, etc.).

This strategy often fails for a combination of reasons. One of the biggest reasons is because teams bring in players with huge egos who cannot co-exist with their teammates and accept their role with the team. This is a recipe for failure. Look at many of the past championship teams. Even if these teams did not have extraordinary chemistry, they all had players who played together for a while and were comfortable in their given roles (Patriots, Lakers, Spurs, Red Sox, etc.).

It's extremely rare for a franchise to find the right combination of superstars and role players who fit together harmoniously without any bitterness. It's even rarer to see a superstar of Lebron's caliber who can not only raise his teammates to new heights - without making them feel inferior (like Jordan did) - but who can do so while genuinely having fun with them. LeBron's significant talents aside, I think that is a big reason why the Cavaliers have been so successful this season. Please believe, chemistry is truly one of the great equalizers that can get a team to play better than the sum of its parts.

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