A few weeks ago, LeBron "Oh My God LOOK AT ME" James went on television to take his talents to "South Beach," pulling the rug out from the city of Cleveland and not comprehending how foolish he looked.  But here in Northern Illinois (or Southern Wisconsin, wherever you happen to be), people here were wondering what was next for the Chicago Bulls.  And surprisingly, they responded quite nicely.

I say surprisingly because the Bulls in the last handful of years have been slow to react, unwilling to take a chance and switch things up.  From the infamous "resistant to trade Luol Deng for Pau Gasol" fiasco to the more infamous "not sure if we want to trade for Kobe Freaking Bryant" situation, the Bulls have never been afraid to drag their feet in the mud.  But not only were the Bulls quick to respond to James bolting down the easy road, they may have had the second best offseason of any team in the league.

It actually started the day before 'LeDecision' when Chicago snatched up Carlos Boozer before the New Jersey Nets knew what was going on.  Boozer, in my mind, is actually a better fit on the Bulls roster than James would have been, but I'm probably in the minority there.  They picked up Kyle Korver to fill the shooting void left by John Salmons and the gawky, not sure how he's a basketball player void left by Kirk Hinrich.  The bench was bolstered with the underrated Ronnie Brewer and C.J. Watson and shockingly-still-effective Kurt Thomas.  And they look as though they're not finished, on the verge of signing the corpse of Tracy McGrady for a low-risk, potentially high-reward addition.

It's a tough pill to swallow when your team loses out on one of the best players in the game, but the Chicago Bulls have taken full advantage of it.  The money that would have been used to bring in James is now being used to upgrade every position on the roster.  They would have been fun to watch with LeBron, but the Chicago Bulls have transformed into one of the East's deepest teams this summer, and one of its best.

Midway point of the baseball season is here (or slightly gone depending on how you look at it).  Back before the season began I gave my predictions on the division winners, so let's revisit and see how I've done so far.  My predictions will be in parentheses next to the current standings:

AL East

1. New York                 (New York)
2. Tampa Bay  2 GB  (Boston)
3. Boston  5 GB          (Tampa Bay)
4. Toronto                    (Baltimore)
5. Baltimore                 (Toronto)

My biggest mistake here was thinking Baltimore had the ability to play baseball.  And if it weren't for a train of Red Sox injuries I have a feeling the top of my predictions would be accurate.

NL East

1. Atlanta                            (Philadephia)
2. New York    4 GB          (Atlanta)
3. Philadelphia  4.5 GB   (Florida)
4. Florida                            (New York)
5. Washington                   (Washington)

Well, I got Washington right.  And to be fair, I did have Atlanta as my wild card team.  Think of how bad this would look if Philly didn't just sweep Cincy.

AL West

1. Texas                              (Los Angeles)
2. Los Angeles   4.5 GB   (Seattle)
3. Oakland                          (Texas)
4. Seattle                             (Oakland)

So I underestimated Texas' pitching and even though I wasn't completely sold on Seattle coming into the year, I still oversold them.  I'll still never count out LA.

NL West

1. San Diego                     (Colorado)
2. Colorado  2 GB            (Los Angeles)
3. Los Angeles  2 GB      (San Francisco)
4. San Francisco  4 GB   (Arizona)
5. Arizona                           (San Diego)

Those pesky Padres decided to go and screw up everything.  I wish them nothing but ill-will in the second half.  Blast you, San Diego!

AL Central

1. Chicago                       (Chicago)
2. Detroit  0.5 GB            (Detroit)
3. Minnesota  3.5 GB     (Minnesota)
4. Kansas City                (Cleveland)
5. Cleveland                    (Kansas City)

Thank you, surging White Sox.  You looked down and out last month, but have made my early predictions on the most unpredictable division look pretty darn good.  I mixed up the Royals and Indians, but really, who cares?

NL Central

1. Cincinnati                   (St. Louis)
2. St. Louis  1 GB          (Chicago)
3. Milwaukee  8.5 GB   (Milwaukee)
4. Chicago  9.5 GB       (Cincinnati)
5. Houston                     (Pittsburgh)
6. Pittsburgh                  (Houston)

So, I didn't buy into the Cincy hype and I should have.  I also foolishly thought the Cubs wouldn't be such an astronomical failure as they are.  Still think this is the Cards' division to lose.

So what to take from this?  I shouldn't do predictions.  And I now have an unbridled hatred of the San Diego Padres.  Here's to a good second half.

So...that went well...

I'm not sure if LeBron James realizes just how bad he came off last night on his one-hour special.  I don't think his people and his ego will allow him to notice just how far he fell in the public eye when he chose "South Beach" over his hometown.  The King looked like a fool and there's no way around it.  Anyone who says otherwise is flat out not paying attention.  LeBron James, the Akron boy, went onto national television and ripped the heart out of the city of Cleveland.  And it could have been avoided.

I understand why James bolted to Miami, albeit that's pretty sad in its own right.  His decision to join Wade and Bosh and *insert random D-leaguers* said to me that he wanted to easy way to a ring.  He doesn't think he can beat the Wade-Bosh duo on his own, so he jump aboard the bandwagon.  But it's the way he did it that is so mind-boggling.  Why couldn't LeBron just have his contract details released to the media like EVERYONE ELSE DOES, then hold a press conference?  You could have softened the blow to the fanbase that was supported you since high school.  You could have softened the blow to the organization that has done everything for you the last seven years.  You could have remained an icon, not a villain.  

But you can't control a press conference.  You can't command attention with a press conference.  You can't hold the NBA hostage with a press conference.  You need a TV special.  You need Jim Gray to ask you questions like "Can you count on your fingers how many people know your decision?  One or two hands?"  Fun fact, Jim Gray was paid by LRMR, LeBron's marketing company, and not ESPN.  You need to sit in a Boys & Girls Club in Connecticut to show that you care about the nation's youth.  You need the world to stop for you.  And guess what, you got that and more.  You have the world against you now.  You've gone from a likable superstar who loves to have fun to an arrogant, heartless punk.  You're not The King.  You're a tag-a-long who needs superstar friends to win you a championship.  You're not the next Jordan anymore.  Jordan made those around him great.  You need greatness around you to help you off the mat.

Either LeBron James is completely unaware of how much he meant to the city of Cleveland or he just doesn't care.  But they're crushed.  Absolutely crushed.  And LeBron humiliated them on television for his amusement.  If you have sometime, faithful readers, dial up our sister station at www.espncleveland.com and just listen.  Listen to the hatred, the vitrol, the anger in that city.  This isn't Brett Favre leaving Green Bay.  LeBron meant the world to that city and he spat in their face.  You wonder why Dan Gilbert went off the deep end in his letter to the fans?  Because the fans needed to hear that.  The fans needed a rallying cry and their team's owner gave it to them.

I won't get into how David Stern is at fault here for this mess as well.  I won't get into just how bad all of this is for the NBA.  Those are for a later blog.  But I hope LeBron realizes the idiocy he displayed last night.  If he hasn't by now, he'll find out when the Heat head to Quicken Loans Arena later this season.  That city is done with you, LeBron.  I hope you're happy.

I'm not gonna talk about the idiocy of baseball fans in this blog, Stephen Johnson has covered that in his.  I'll just leave that subject at baseball fans being idiots.  Let's address the rest of this stupidity.

The All-Star Game matters.  That's what we're told.  The winning league gets homefield advantage in the World Series, after all!!!  IT MATTERS, I TELL YOU.  So the managers construct rosters in the best hopes to win the game.  It's why we get Omar Infante on the National League and Ty Wigginton on the American League.  They're role players who will do the little things to help win and blah blah blah.  Yet, the fans still vote for the starters and give us Yadier Molina and Jason Heyward.  Plus, there still has to be at least one player from every team so that...well, let's face it...it's a TV ratings thing.  So instead of picking an MVP candidate in Joey Votto, we get Evan Meek.  Thank you, baseball!  I have been dying to see Evan Meek, and I'm sure the much-maligned Pirates' fans will tune in for Evan Meek's one batter of work.

But the managers still fail at constructing a winning roster.  Bias still reigns with the managers.  Instead of previously mentioned Joey Votto, we get Ryan Howard.  Instead of Paul Konerko, we get Alex Rodriguez.  And maybe the funniest thing in all of this, the AL starting lineup will have six left-handed batters.  The NL pitching staff has just one left-handed pitcher (Arthur Rhodes).  So, if this game is about winning, wouldn't you think Charlie Manuel would have found another left-handed pitcher to put on his roster?  Maybe one that will pitch before the 7th inning?  But...maybe he couldn't because he was forced to put Matt Capps on the team. 

The All Star Game is an exhibition game...but the winner gets homefield in the World Series...even though the rosters are constructed by the fans and biased managers...but it matters.  Good Lord.  Here's a novel thought...how about the team with *GASP* the best record gets home field?!?!?!  How crazy, nutso is that?!?!?!  Then, you can make the All Star Game a fun, midseason exhibition game like it's supposed to be.  The MLB All Star Game is the biggest paradox in sports.  If I wanted my head to explode in confusion I'd pop in my DVDs of 'Lost.'  Maybe I'll do that on July 13th.  I'll find out who wins this "exhibition game that matters" in November when the Yankees open the World Series in the Bronx.

Doomsday in the NBA is just a few hours away as NBA free agency begins at midnight.  The lead dog in all of this is LeBron James, and it's exactly the way he wants it to be.  The league is at his beck and call and the media is eating it up.  James and his people release little pieces of information like this, and the over-analyzation of it all begins again.  All while LeBron James stands on his pedestal and basks in the attention. 

Don't kid yourself, LeBron is entirely aware of what he wants to do.  He's chosen his next stop.  But he can't resist the allure of having the NBA world turned towards him.  He doesn't need to have six different teams make presentations to him.  It isn't that difficult to analyze a certain team and determine what the best fit is.  But he loves that six different franchises are dropping everything for him.  Hell, why do the Bulls, Knicks, Nets, Heat, Cavs and Clippers even need to make presentations?  Does one of them have an ace up their sleeve that isn't readily available to the rest of the world?  Will one of them drop a bombshell in their Powerpoint slides that catches LeBron and his ego off guard?  Doubtful.  It's all for the King to have multi-millionaires bow down at his feet.

David Stern and the NBA are at fault with all of this nonsense as well.  LeBron is now bigger than the league and David Stern is just fine with that.  David Stern is the one commissioner of the four major sports that will gladly let its stars overshadow its franchises.  It's a joke, but then again, the NBA has slid in that direction for awhile now.

We'll know what's important to LeBron James when he finally releases his destination of choosing.  If he wants to win soon he'll go to Chicago, Miami or LA.  If he wants to be liked in the public eye, he'll stay in Cleveland.  If he wants to roll on blankets of money and endorsements, he'll go to New York or New Jersey.  And at this point, nothing would surprise me.  Nothing is out of the question with LeBron James.  I'd be stunned if he didn't sign contracts with all of them at this point.

I'd like to thank the folks in Lake Placid in 1980 for coining that chant.  Simple, yet effective.  And it made an appearance again yesterday.

The US Soccer/Football team was headed home as they were scoreless with Algeria heading into stoppage time.  After a brilliant pass up the field from keeper Tim Howard, Donovan was on the break.  Landon passed the ball to Jozy Altidore who set up Clint Dempsey (who should have had about 4 goals in this game) in front of the net.  After kicking it right into the Alergian keeper, the rebound was there for Donovan, and the country celebrated.

Sit back and think about this for a second.  Americans are gathering around their televisions, celebrating and cheering like this, and it's for soccer.  We've been told that soccer would rise in popularity here in America ever since we hosted the World Cup in '94, but it hasn't come.  Maybe, just maybe, this is the breakthrough it needs.  Landon Donovan, Clint Dempsey and Tim Howard are now known names to the casual sports fan.

I doubt there's many who think the US team can win the World Cup, but they don't need to.  Soccer is at the forefront of the sporting world right now in the US.  They've done their job.  Hmmm...a much-maligned sport in America succeeding on the world's biggest stage and uniting a nation in chant...sound familiar?