Days after parading through downtown Cleveland to celebrate the Cavaliers winning the National Basketball Association championship, LeBron James headed to his hometown of Akron to continue the festivities on Thursday, where the city held their own celebrations for their native son.
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James cited in part the grind of having logged so much court time through six consecutive trips to the NBA Finals, including rallying the Cavaliers from a 3-1 deficit in the best-of-seven final to a stunning seventh-game triumph for the NBA crown.
He led the Cleveland Cavaliers to the National Basketball Association title this week, his sixth straight appearance in the finals.
He went on a social media rant about that – and those who doubted him or his motives – earlier in the week.
As the National Basketball Association playoffs were winding up, however, news of the Olympic team focused largely on who wouldn’t play.
Other players who have committed to playing include Oklahoma City forward Kevin Durant, Indiana forward Paul George, Sacramento center DeMarcus Cousins and two Golden State Warriors – forward Draymond Green and guard Klay Thompson.
The All-Star forward averaged a career-high 21.2 points per game for the Spurs during the 2015-16 season along with 6.8 rebounds and 2.6 assists.
And while James will no doubt opt out of his current contract in order to get a hefty raise – and deservedly so – he’s already stated that he’s not leaving Cleveland, so that kind of drama won’t exist this off-season.
He was also a reserve on the 2004 U.S. team that settled for bronze at Athens and on the USA team that finished third at the 2010 world championships in Japan.
Enjoy that hard-earned championship, Cleveland sports fans.
James walked out as fans chanted ‘MVP’.
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He put his heart where he felt it belonged all along (despite the horrendous “The Decision”), and he delivered upon his promise.
