On July 8, 2010, reigning MVP Lebron James’ “The Decision” changed and shaped the National Basketball Association’s landscape for the entire decade to come. His decision to leave the Cleveland Cavaliers, a team that not only drafted him but is also where he grew up, took power away from organizations and gave it to players to forge their own destiny. Along with James, the Miami Heat already had former NBA champion Dwayne Wade and would later trade for five-time All-Star Chris Bosh before the start of the 2010 season.

Before James was even drafted, he was dubbed “the King,” and expectations were high. Now that he was on the loaded roster, it was even higher. The first year of the dynasty met anything but expectations. That year was filled with a lot of experimenting and chemistry building under third-year head coach Eric Spoelstra during which they finished with a record of 58-24 for second in the Eastern Conference and third in the NBA overall. They would go on to NBA Finals and lose 4-2 to the Dallas Mavericks. This would be the low point of the dynasty as they would go on to win back-to-back NBA Finals before losing in 2014 to the San Antonio Spurs, which ended their legendary run and James’ tenure with The Heat.

Through their four-season-long run, they won 71% of their games and averaged 101.3 points in the regular season. Lebron James would also win MVP of the league three times and finals MVP twice. They dominated during that span and created timeless sports moments. They set the tone for what would become an amazing decade in basketball and finally tip the scales to give players more power than ever before.