NOTE: Scott Raab, a Cleveland native and Cleveland State graduate, has been a writer-at-large for Esquire since 1997. His book, The Whore of Akron, chronicling LeBron James’ departure from the Cavaliers, hits stores today. The following is a Q&A with Raab.
Q: How did you get the idea to write this?
A: After the Cavs went to Orlando (in 2008) for that playoff series, (Cavs.com writer) Joe Gabriele sent a letter to (Esquire’s) Answer Fella column that had nothing to do with basketball. I got back to Joe as myself, as a Cleveland guy and a Cavs fan. When the season was over and the Cavs lost, I felt despondent. Danny Ferry, Mike Brown and LeBron James were all entering their walk years, and never had a team been under that type of pressure to win. I thought I’d follow them around and write a book. I was hoping to write a book of our native son leading our team to the promised land after wandering a half century in the desert, but that’s obviously not what happened.
Q: People are going to say that it has been more than a year, you should just let it go.
A: I think that’s valid, but I don’t know that for a certain kind of fan that’s as easy to do as it is to say. One of the things that defines a fan for me is not letting go anymore than Browns fans have let go of The Drive and are happy for John Elway that he finally won Super Bowl rings, and are pleased with The Move and happy that fine Brooklyn boy (Art Modell) got to win a Super Bowl. This might be a little worse. Modell wasn’t from Northeast Ohio and whatever the level of treachery there, to me it doesn’t raise to the level of LeBron James.
Q: How did you come up with the book’s title?
A: Woody Allen had a short story called The Whore of Mensa. There’s the aspect of whoredom that’s unintentionally sexist, but someone like LeBron going ‘Oh baby, you’re so good, this is the best,’ then hitting the door when someone better comes along.
Q: Is it true you delivered a signed copy of the book to LeBron’s house?
A: Yes. I signed a copy ‘To LeBron with sincere gratitude for making this book possible.’ I went to his home in Bath with a camera crew and didn’t even realize there was a guard house. The gates are locked and I wasn’t trying to do anything to cause anyone to call the cops. I was leaning a copy of the book inside the gates and suddenly there’s an actual cop. The camera guy was right behind me. I told him I just wanted to make sure LeBron gets a copy, that I wrote the book. The video is available on YouTube and my website (scottraab.com). Nothing remarkable unfolded. I wasn’t looking to do anything that would bring a call to township police. We’ll have another video of me going to LRMR and dropping one off for Maverick. I wasn’t doing anything provocative. I was literally dropping off inscribed copies to guys that not only were the subjects, but without their marketing genius, this doesn’t exist. If he doesn’t do The Decision, I’m not sure there’s a book at all. I owe these guys, I really do.
Q: Now that the book is being released, do you feel any differently about LeBron James?
A: I think to some degree, yes. To see last season end that way really called up conflicting emotions. While I was thrilled that he lost and particularly that he choked away the last four games of the series, it doesn’t take a hater to recognize there is something sad and poignant about a player of that caliber failing like that. It’s a stunning, sad thing. Something is missing inside him between his ears. It’s the same thing that made him talk about how easy it was going to be at that introductory press conference (in Miami), when he was saying ‘Not four, not five’ championships. Have you ever heard an athlete win a championship and say how easy it was? There’s something very clueless, very, very sad about the guy that he’d refer to himself as a grown man, then at the same time sound like someone who really has no idea what it takes to win. I was at Game 6 in Miami. On the way out of town, I was going to the airport listening to the radio and they were already talking about dealing him to the Magic for Dwight Howard. They’re already like, ‘Wow, this guy is broken.’ I’m sitting at an elimination game in the NBA Finals and a quarter of the fans there were Mavs fans. This is where LeBron wanted to play, in front of fans that really don’t care. He’ll never find what he had here, and his loyalty never really was to Cleveland or the Cavs. No matter how he wants to portray it, I think it was a terrible decision. Toward the end of the season, he spent more time talking about Cleveland and Cleveland fans than he did talking about Miami. But as happy as I was at the outcome, Cleveland still hasn’t won a championship. Cleveland is still batting 0 for 60.
Jason Lloyd can be reached at jlloyd@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the Cavs blog at http://cavs.ohio.com.
