When I got the email saying that Heat banned a writer from the building my first reaction was that the Heat were being petty.  As someone who has been banned from a locker room for something that I wrote about Lebron back when he was in Cleveland, I was ready to lay the smackdown.

Esquire is a huge magazine, so I wondered what possibly could have Scott Raab said to cause the Heat to ban him.

Then I did some digging and here is what I found via SB Nation:

Raab has been denied credentials by the Miami Heat, a decision apparently supported by the NBA. And sure, it’s a completely fair decision, but I’d just like to say that Scott Raab hates LeBron James more than anyone I’ve ever seen, anywhere, and if criticism gets you banned in the NBA, at least Raab hasn’t been shy about it.

His hate for LeBron is a glorious spectacle of bile, sneering, and deep, vigilant loathing, never missing an opportunity to remind LeBron just how awful a person he is. Go follow him on Twitter, just for the entertainment. You may think you “hate” LeBron, but make no mistake: Scott Raab puts the rest of us to shame.

Like when LeBron was tweeting about the Jets-Browns game this past weekend:

But they haven’t quit. Look in the mirror, motherf***er. You’re a f**king loser and always will be. RT @KingJames Sanchez is wearing them down

Or during last week’s Celtics-Heat game:Coach Spo big on passion. #WhoreOfAkron big on talking empty s**t and killing coaches.

Or a hundred other tweets that were just as ridiculous.

In his latest missive, Raab dropped a bomb of surprising news:

At 4:01 P.M. yesterday, I get this e-mail from Tim Donovan, head of media relations for the Miami Heat:

“Scott: You are no longer welcome at our building and will not be credentialed moving forward. Tim”

I have been critical of Lebron about his whining about the “haters” and I have been known to take a subtle jab or two on twitter of the him.

But there is a fine line as a journalist from being critical and just been hateful. When you personal feelings create so much emotion that it clouds your judgment as a writer then you become a very dangerous individual.

People look at the media for information and unbiased opinions. It is obvious that Raab has personal feelings of angst against Lebron.

Maybe Raab can separate the personal from the professional, from everything I read about Raab he is an excellent writer.

I will tell you this though, if I was an athlete and Raab was using that type of language to describe me or writing tweets like this:

No big deal. Hitler once won it. @racefortheprize Scott_Raab’s head will explode…LeBron James humbled by Time’s Person of Year nomination.

It would be a problem.  Stuff like that isn’t funny or witty, it is just spiteful and ignorant.  While you have to have thick skin to be an athlete, they doesn’t give people carte blanche to be disrespectful.

There is nothing you can do about fans talking crazy online, but as a member of media you have a responsibility to be professional and Raab cross that line.

In 99 out of 100 situations I would disagree with any media member being banned, because of criticizing a player, but this isn’t criticisms, this vile hatred and once Raab put that out in the public he has to live with the consequences.