Signs of the times: 

What does it tell us that LeBron James, one of the all-time greats — some argue the greatest in basketball history — makes for such a self-entitled, blind-to-facts compromise of the good senses that he has become impossible for thoughtful adults to root for? 

Further, why do thoughtful fans of what the NBA used to be equate James with the me-first, often vulgar rhetoric and attitudes of so many of the NBA’s obscenely enriched and barely interested stars? 

In James’ shallow, narrow world, his in-game verbal hassle during the Lakers’ overtime win vs. the Knicks on Thursday — yep, even in the midst of close games James abandons his team on behalf of himself — to gripe at all-about-me center-stage ESPN act Stephen A. Smith, who was seated in a front-row, VIP, non-working media seat.