LeBron James recently completed perhaps the greatest performance in the history of the NBA Finals, averaging 33.6 points, 12.0 rebounds and 10.0 assists, something that has never been accomplished before,[i] and against one of the greatest teams in NBA history no less. And yet there was no space for us to stop and appreciate James’s performance. Judgment was our first impulse. Every fan had an opinion on what this means to James’s legacy. Many declared that by losing these finals, the fifth NBA Finals he’s lost, he forfeited his right to be considered one of the greatest basketball player of all time.

Let’s set aside the argument of whether or not James ought to be considered the one of the greatest (although, he is!). My point is that, in a society driven by social media, we become, more than ever, agents of judgment and identified by our opinions. Hot-takes don’t just fill the waves of sports talk radio, they fill our social media feeds, and even our souls. We are taught to have strong and quick opinions on all matter of subjects. We build up and tear down social icons like skilled contractors.