FanHouse SouljaBoy

Every single game of the Wizards/Cavs series has been a blowout, and yet the history and war of words between these two teams has made it one of the most compelling of the postseason.

As promised, DeShawn Stevenson set the mood for the fun-loving Wizards by bringing out Soulja Boy, the one-hit wonder that LeBron James dismissively compared Stevenson to in the metaphor heard 'round the Association, to sit courtside. And of course, Dan Steinberg of the D.C. Sports Bog was there:

Soulja Boy: I mean, I've got to support who support me, and that's the Wizards. I mean, I'm a fan of LeBron James, but when it's all said and done I've got to back who backing me up. You know? [Stevenson] called me and invited me out, he said 'I'm gonna fly you out, you just come, rock the jersey, sit courtside,' and I came out.

Dan Steinberg: So are you gonna help the Wizards win?

Soulja Boy: I mean, if it comes down to it, we're gonna have to do what we got to do to win, you feel me? I came all the way out here, we gotta take it home. If it comes down to it, you'll see. For real. We can't lose tonight man. I'm gonna have to talk to him, be like 'It's time to rock,' you know what I'm saying? I've got a lot riding on this.

I hate talking about ratings when it comes to sports because I find them inherently meaningless. More sporting events are shown on cable than ever before, which means that ratings are almost always down when compared to previous years when they were shown on over-the-air network television. Plus, there's just more competition for our entertainment needs these days, such as TiVo and the internet. But knowing this, I'm actually impressed to see that the NBA's ratings increased by more than 30% over last year. From Sports Media Watch:

Meanwhile, ESPN's opening day tripleheader saw soaring ratings. Cavaliers/Wizards drew a 2.1 in the ratings-unfriendly 12:30 PM timeslot, up 50% from a 1.4 for Nets/Raptors last year. Mavericks/Hornets drew a 2.4, up 60% from a 1.5 for last year's Magic/Pistons game. The highest rated game of the day on ESPN was Jazz/Rockets, which drew a 2.5 rating -- up 39% from a 1.8 for the same game last year.

Before the NBA spins this too much, I have a couple of theories for the increase. For one, last year's Pistons/Magic series was a predictable yawner, while Cavs/Wiz has been built up in the press thanks to DeShawn Stevenson, LeBron James and Soulja Boy. The Nets/Raps series was actually entertaining last year, but ratings (as far as I'm aware) don't take into account Canadian viewers, so it stands to reason that two U.S. teams are producing higher numbers.

But still, an increase is an increase no matter what the explanation, and it's nice to see more people tuning into what should be one of the most exciting playoffs (in the West, at least) in recent memory.

When DeShawn Stevenson said LeBron James was overrated, LBJ refused to take the bait, simply saying, "It's almost like Jay-Z saying something bad about Soulja Boy. There's no comparison." Not surprisingly, Soulja Boy, whose real name is DeAndre Way, didn't appreciate LBJ's quip. From the Cleveland Plain Dealer (via CSTB):

"Someone from Interscope Records called me and sent me the quote," Way said. "I looked and didn't really think much about it. LeBron said something like he was Jay-Z and DeShawn [Stevenson] is Soulja Boy. I took that as [disrespectful]."

I know you're just dying for James' reaction to Soulja Boy's reaction, right? When asked about it following Friday's practice, James simply said he meant no disrespect. Considering Stevenson laid an egg (three points, 1-for-9 shooting) while James was his typical awesome self in Game 1, we can count on this silly little feud dying a quiet death, right?

If you thought for a second that might be the case, you're incredibly naive.

Let's recap real quick: DeShawn Stevenson called LeBron James "overrated," which prompted LeBron to muse that DeShawn saying anything about him was akin to one-hit wonder rapper Soulja Boy calling out hip-hop demigod Jay-Z. Laughs were had by all and most assumed LBJ got the last word. Well, most assumed wrong. From Brian Windhorst's Akron Beacon Journal blog:

"I hope we play Cleveland. I'm going to get Soulja Boy courtside seats and have him wear a DeShawn Stevenson jersey. Maybe (James) can have Jay-Z there since LeBron's all on his (shorts) anyway. And tell LeBron to cut that beard off and stop copying me."

Apparently this all goes deeper. LeBron said something to Drew Gooden, one of Stevenson's boys, about Stevenson once and Gooden passed it along (I don't think this makes Drew a favorite in the LeBron world, either).

"We're all in the same profession," Stevenson said. "We don't need to talk bad about one another. So, that's how it happened. I was ticked off and that's why I said something to him at tip-off. So, it goes back further than people think."

I think it's safe to assume "all on his (shorts)" is the family-friendly way of saying "all on his jock," right? If so, point DeShawn -- I've always thought LBJ's sycophancy for Jay-Z was a bit embarrassing given his arrogance toward everyone else. And if he actually gets Soulja Boy in his jersey, well, double point DeShawn. The beauty of this feud is that it has to take place in the papers since Stevenson is so far out of LBJ's league talent-wise that no one in their right mind would expect it to be settled on the court, despite my misleading choice of photos above.

Or should I say yooooouuuuuuTubesDay? Cultural phenomena meets man in animal suit . . . go!