On July 8, 2010, I was gathering in the hotel lobby with my AAU basketball teammates before we left for our afternoon game. The lobby was filled with players from all ages and from different parts of the country, it was chaos as everyone was trying to get a good angle to see the TV screen, pushing and maneuvering to get close enough to hear what “the Chosen One” had to say. LeBron James was set to make his famous and well anticipated "Decision." Months leading up to it, fans and critics analyzed and tried to guess where he would land in his first unrestricted free agency, coming off a disappointing playoff exit in the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals. I remember watching the series against the Celtics, where Lebron and the Cavs had a 2-1 series lead before losing the next three games, thinking:

“LeBron just doesn’t look into it fully; he looks like he’s given up.”

Then looking back years later at his stats in the series and seeing in his final game of the series he had 38 points, 19 rebounds and 10 assists (yeah, really seems like the stats of a quitter). I remember thinking after he lost that game, there is no way that he could leave Cleveland, he had already made it to the finals in 2007, and it was his hometown that he promised he would bring them a ring.

Then as we were all crowded into that hotel lobby LeBron rang out the famous words, “I am taking my talents to south beach.” The news shocked me, but it made sense, he was teaming up with 2 other all-stars. They immediately became a favorite to win the championship.

NBA dynasties as far as I had remembered were fighters. They had to fight and claw their way through other NBA dynasties before they could earn an NBA championship. The Bad-Boy Detroit Pistons had to fight through Larry Birds Boston Celtics Empire. Michael Jordan and the Bulls had to overcome the Detroit Pistons. It was just the way of the league back in the day. LeBron appeared to have skipped that entire struggle to win a championship in his early start with the Miami Heat. Everyone thought it was given that he would win multiple championships. Even he did, remember the pep rally in Miami?

It didn’t happen that way. In his first year with the Heat, he lost to the Dallas Mavericks, and was crucified by the media for losing. He quickly became the villain. His second year they beat a baby OKC Thunder, with most of their stars below the age of 25 in five games, but even that was a struggle for the Super Team Miami heat. With one championship under his belt, he repeated after beating the San Antonio Spurs in a seven-game series, but only after they pulled out a tough game six win, where Ray Allen had to hit an improbable scramble, three with five seconds left just for them to force overtime and save the series. The Next year the Spurs get their revenge and beat LeBron. LeBron’s four year vacation in Miami was even a struggle for him.

Now on the verge of the 2016 free agency class becoming available July 1st. the question looming over every NBA fans mind is if Kevin Durant with stay with the young star studded OKC Thunder and Russell Westbrook, that had the record-breaking Warriors down 3-1 in the conference finals, or if he will chose the flight technique like LeBron did six years prior, leaving OKC and starting over? There is a huge difference between Kevin leaving the Thunder and LeBron leaving the Cavs. LeBron left to better his chances of winning a title, but Kevin Durant’s best chances are in Oklahoma. Kevin will be leaving to play with less talent. If Kevin Durant leaves OKC, he will be leaving fellow superstar Russell Westbrook and re-build with a new franchise. I don’t think there is a franchise in the NBA, besides the Warriors, that has more talent and upside than the Thunder. Leaving Oklahoma would only create more work and decrease his chances of ever winning a title. His best bet would be to ignore LeBron’s success leaving Cleveland for Miami and stay in OKC and continue to build with the organization that drafted him.