4) LeBron James
LeBron isn’t a team, but doesn’t he deserve a spot on this list?
I mean, shouldn’t he be on every team’s list?
As he developed in his earlier days with the Cavaliers, the Nets were able to take advantage, beating Cleveland 11 times in 18 tries from his rookie year in 2003-04 to 2007-08. But in their only postseason battle, Cleveland beat the Nets in the Eastern Conference Semifinals 4-2 in 2007.
After 2008, LeBron was a literal blur to the Nets. They’re still trying to figure out what went wrong, as James’s teams beat the Nets 13 straight times in 5 seasons with 2 separate teams, once by scoring Miami’s final 17 points in a comeback victory.
The Nets did eventually recover in 2014, sweeping the season series with Miami 4-0, but then went on to lose to them — and him — in the Eastern Conference Semifinals again, this time 4-1.
It wouldn’t be right to call the Nets and Miami Heat rivals, because that only emerged during LeBron’s South Beach days. The Nets built their team to defeat LeBron’s Heat, not the Birdman’s mohawk.
When James left Miami, so did the tension. Now in Cleveland, the road to the Eastern Conference Championship goes through him once again.
