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"Be Like Mike" was a great marketing gimmick, and, for most of us, a pipe dream. But for many of the super athletic young players in the NBA today, it's a real dream.

And how could it not be so? NBA players will continue to be obsessed with him for decades to come. Every player in the NBA must want, on some level, to recreate what Michael Jordan had.

But what did he have, exactly? What are you doing when you are "being like Mike?" In my crankier moments, I feel that perhaps his legacy has been reduced to something like this:

• Humiliate defenders, mostly by dunking on them. You will be in a lot of highlights, and make more money than you can possibly imagine.
• Super athletic wing players who shoot a lot can lead championship teams, even without a dominant big man.
• It's OK to stay up late partying and gambling like a rock star -- sometimes even the night before games.
• Clothes matter a lot.
• Money matters a ton.
• The little "white" lies of playing the game (for instance, selling the world the idea that you're not the fully empowered guy in the gold chains, but instead the harmless smile machine in cartoons) are the cost of doing business.

Are those things wrong? I can't prove it, and don't really care. Did he invent all of those things? Not one of them.

What worries me though, is that his most important lessons -- the things that actually made him historic -- might be getting lost in the shuffle.

This occurred to me the other night as I watched Cleveland lose to New Jersey in one of the least spirited playoff games I have ever seen.

In my mind, these are the things that made Michael Jordan way more than a highlight machine and a wealthy man, but a champion:

• From the second you wake up in the morning, until the the second you fall asleep at night, be obsessed with kicking a-- all over the basketball court.
• What obstacles? Jumpshot a little spotty? Fix it. Footwork giving you trouble? Fix it. Teammates not pumped up? Fix it. Feeling a little winded? Fix it. A particular defender making things tough for you? Fix it. A whole team of Pistons making things tough for you? Fix it.
• Listen to people who know what they're talking about. (For Jordan the list included Tim Grover, Phil Jackson, David Falk, and I'm sure many others.)
• Every second the game is in session, whether you are on offense or defense, whether you are on the bench or in the game, be possessed, electric, aware, and active in your quest to win.

A few times since the playoffs began I have turned on the TV and thought to myself: wow. This is an intense game. Utah vs. Houston felt like that. Golden State vs. Utah felt like that. Phoenix vs. San Antonio feels like that.

But at other times I have turned it on and thought: wait. Is my Tivo messed up? Am I watching a meaningless game from last November? 'Cause I don't see players playing hard. I don't see the next Michael Jordan in this game. That last bullet point -- the one that some people sometimes refer to as "heartbeat" -- is not part of every player's wiring.

For instance, the Detroit Pistons don't seem to be able to muster team-wide electricity without first scenting despair. Consider this from Jack McCallum's article in the current Sports Illustrated:

"We were lackadaisical and just played too relaxed both offensively and defensively," said backup forward Antonio McDyess. The words lackadaisical and relaxed were seldom applied to the Bad Boys.

Those words don't belong on the NBA court ever. Smile, sure. Laugh, yes. Have a good time. But work hard at winning, dammit. When all of the most important work of your entire life can be boiled down to a few thousand minutes of NBA playing time (and your lifestyle allows enough free time for long sessions playing video games) in my mind zero of those minutes on the court should be wasted coasting. That goes quadruple in the playoffs, and ten times if you have any thought whatsoever that you might be the next Michael Jordan.

Cut from the same cloth? (Getty Images)

Which brings me, of course, to LeBron James.

To my eye, he's getting about a B- on that second set of bullet points.

Maybe it's his body language, his youth, his goofiness, or something else. But he only sometimes looks like he needs wins as much as he needs oxygen.

Other times he plays like he'd rather be making TV commercials.

Which one is the real LeBron James? Is there one yet? Is it too soon to tell?

He's still awfully young. If you judge by age, he's already ahead of the Jordan curve. (For instance, James might be going to the conference finals -- admittedly, in a weak year -- in his fourth season, at age 22. Jordan first went in his fifth season, at age 26, after the Bulls had added Pippen, Grant and Cartwright. Not to mention, in his first five NBA postseasons, Michael Jordan was 4-9 in "closeout" games.)

So, beyond the clothes and the money, is LeBron James like Mike? Can he be? I don't know. But a closeout game on the road to make the Eastern Conference Finals is a powerful opportunity for him to start answering that question. I'll be watching.

UPDATE: Kelly Dwyer of SI.com emailed a great response to this post:

I grew up in and out of Chicago and never really knew anything besides all-out, borderline-scary effort because of Mike. I never understood why Barkley, Robinson, or even Magic (in his later years) never seemed to be able to dominate in the same, cruel, way. Never got it. To me, for a while, it was the only way to think -- you get out of bed thinking "win," and screw anyone who wants to get in your way.

But you'll never see me trashing someone in comparison to Michael. Nobody came close to him. Nobody was that psychotic, really, and it's not fair to expect other humans to act as dysfunctional as Mike. That dysfunction brought championships to my favorite team, it made me proud to be a Chicagoan, it colored my winters and springs with memories of championship runs and near-misses, and it was the most fun I'll ever have as a basketball fan.

But I'd be a fool to expect any player, no matter how talented, no matter how determined, to act in the same way he did.

Because nobody's ever acted like that. Russell's the closest, but even he was breaking bread with Wilt the night before. So, when I trash LeBron for not rebounding more and going coast-to-coast, or Vince Carter for shooting fadeaways, or Dirk for acting as he did in that first round -- it's mainly because I want them to be more like Dwyane Wade. Not like Mike. Not even Kobe (who still shoots too many perimeter jumpers). Be like Wade -- put your head down and get to the front of that rim. Expecting anyone to be like Mike, on or off the court, that's just too damn much.