How do you measure an athlete’s reputation with fans? Pretty much every basketball blog in the entire blogsphere has either posted, polled, or asked the question: “Has your opinion of Lebron James changed since his ESPN special on ‘The Decision’?”. But still that all seems a bit anecdotal and not an accurate representation of what the broader public might think of Lebron James.
Well according to CNBC’s SportsBiz there is a more quantitative and scientific (loosely used) way to measure a pro athletes reputation with his fans and the general public. The ‘Q Score’.
Let’s put it this way, from the results you would think they polled all of Cleveland to get Lebron’s most recent Q Score. His numbers fell off the damn map….
“LeBron’s positive score at that time was the highest we had ever seen it,” Schafer said.
But since “The Decision” show on July 8, things have gone seriously downhill for the NBA star.
LeBron’s Q Score today?
Schafer says that now only 14 percent of the general population see him as a positive figure, a 41.6 percent drop, while 39 percent view him in a negative light, a 77 percent decline.
In fact, LeBron is now the sixth most disliked sports personality, according to The Q Score Company, behind Michael Vick, Tiger Woods, Terrell Owens, Chad Ochocinco and Kobe Bryant.
Schafer says that LeBron’s “Decision” was one of the most detrimental acts – not related to any anti-social behavior — by a sports personality since the Q Scores were first developed more than 45 years ago.
Lebron, you’ve got work to do my man. Especially if you want to be a billionaire athlete. Your name and your brand are your golden ticket. Let’s just hope ‘Bron was wise enough to fire any advisers in his entourage who recommended and supported the move to announce his free agency decision on a one hour ESPN special.
