I'm a native Clevelander who (deeply) resented James's departure and certainly agrees with Ian Crouch at The New Yorker.
And both were reminders that, while members of the public thrill to decision stories, they may also come to resent the deciders.
I'm challenged, though, by his later statement
If James had ended his hour-long infomercial in 2010 by telling the host Jim Gray that he was staying in Cleveland, the whole “Decision” event would be remembered very differently today, as a joyful, if self-important, expression of loyalty. Decision 2.0 will surely be remembered as LeBron’s redemption.
I was stung by LeBron's departure even though I, too, had left Cleveland lohg before. It seemed like a very public snub. Perhaps my feelings would be different if I still lived in Cleveland; it's hard for me now to see any civic motivation in this new move. An NBA title won't mean much to me if it comes; James is just another player. There's more opinion to work through from Jay Caspian King at The New Yorker, from Glenn Moore and Kevin Blackistone at The PBS NewsHour, and from Ross Douthat at The New York Times.