Shaking hands with his opponent after a defeat doesn’t make much sense to LeBron James and neither does keeping his word.

After “preliminary” putting his name into the hat for the 2010 dunk competition, the self proclaimed King has reversed court and withdrawn. The NBA’s announcement of the participants that will entertain the crowd in Dallas on February 13^th is minus the man who has delusions of MJ grandeur.

What exactly is LeBron so scurred of?

It’s not like he has to worry about taking an L in the contest. By simply showing up for the event he’s guaranteed a win. Do you honestly think that those figure head judges will be allowed to give the W to someone not named LeBron? Not on David Stern’s watch they won’t.

Plus, LeBron doesn’t need to get all crazy creative and try to reinvent the dunk. His sick hops and cheetah speed are his best weapons. No need to try and catch oops off the shot clock while doing a 360 windmill leaping over one of his dancing teammates. Just use what the big man up stairs blessed you with to thrown one down from the free throw line on a twelve foot rim. Do something nobody else on this planet is capable of doing. Is that too much to ask of the man who requested everyone stop wearing #23 in honor of Jordan?

Here’s a suggestion: How about LeBron honoring Jordan by doing the 2010 version of all of MJ’s iconic dunks?

To be fair, the NBA has bastardized the contest. Check the ’02 competition when the league officially jumped the shark with the “Wheel of Dunks”.

Still, this is a tradition.

Dr. J, Air Jordan, The Human Highlight Film, Kobe and Air Canada all took the plunge both in the name of entertaining the masses and proving their dunking supremacy.

Let me guess, the kind King just wants to let guys like Gerald Wallace and Shannon Brown get a little shine.

How nice of you, LeBron. Always thinking of the less fortunate.

What other excuse is there? Oh right, he needs the rest.

Like Kobe needed the rest after playing in the NBA Finals, the Bejing Olympics and back to the NBA Finals again. Like Yao Ming needs the rest after playing an entire regular season then balling for his national team every summer.

No, winning the dunk contest is not a necessary stepping stone for entrance into the Hall of Fame. But it sure is a moment that can create a new page in the mythology of the greatest to ever play.

Unfortunately for James, he’s already been anointed as the greatest so there is no need to prove it. Kinda makes you wonder if LeBron would even shake hands with Jordan if his Cavs lost to the Bulls in the Eastern Finals much less allow Krypto-Nate to jump over him in the name of giving the fans a good show.

(Chris Shellcroft is the lead blogger for Just Blog Baby, occasional contributor on Lake Show Life and an all around righteous dude. You can follow him on Twitter.)