By Norm Frauenheim-
There’s a lot of talk about TBE this spring. It started with Floyd Mayweather Jr. It continues with LeBron James. But there’s a difference, one that becomes increasingly evident as the drama unfolds in the ongoing NBA Finals.
For Mayweather, TBE is a fashion statement, an acronym he wears on caps, T-shirts and anything else for sale. For James, it’s a personal statement, a challenge he took on in his return to Cleveland.
TBE stands for The Best Ever, of course. But that can mean just about anything. It’s an acronym, after all. Define it with your own values and these days that’s money. Money, money, money. Welcome to the wealth gap. There’s the one percent and the 99 percent who wish we were.
That’s Mayweather’s world and it is re-confirmed every time he looks at Forbes. He’s the magazine’s No. 1-earning athlete all over again, the best ever, better even than Tiger Woods.
Mayweather’s $300 million in Forbes latest edition of its annual list of jockdom’s filthy rich breaks Woods record of $115 million for the 12-month period between 2007 and 2008. Woods, by the way, is still ranked No. 9 by Forbes. But that’s about the only leaderboard he makes any more. Woods is shooting in the 80s and forever shooting himself out of golf’s TBE debate.
Point is, it’s easy and misleading to equate TBE with Forbes. But, I suspect, Mayweather does. If there’s a moment when Mayweather isn’t talking about money or flaunting all it buys, I’ve missed it. He loves to show it off. I’d prefer to see him show off a knockout punch once in a while. But, as a member of the 99 percent, what do I know?
Then, there’s James, who has his own definition of TBE in the month after Mayweather and Pacquiao generated $600 million in an event that was a Gross Domestic Product in more ways than one.
James doesn’t talk about TBE. He’s never been quoted as saying he’s better than Michael Jordan or Magic Johnson, unlike Mayweather, who has said he’s better than Muhammad Ali and Sugar Ray Robinson. Yet, the NBA debate is more lively and forceful than ever with James’ powerful show of talent and will in leading the injury-ridden Cavaliers in a bid to upset the Golden State Warriors.
Increasingly, James’ performance is generating a fan-based debate about why he might be better. With Mayweather, it has been more about him saying he is and the public saying he’s not. Real proof is hard to find in Mayweather’s claim, despite a 48-0 record that is one victory short of Rocky Marciano’s mark.
But it’s there with James, whose return to Cleveland from Miami was a a huge gamble. Yet, he embraced the risk, encountered the adversity and has followed up with one great performance after another in a body of work that says legacy is more than an acronym.
Or an income.
