While LeBron James and the NBA are currently taking center stage in Charlotte for the All-Star weekend festivities, this week was also a time to once again re-evaluate James’ impact. That impact earned James the cover of Newsweek and a story written by Lakers legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
Abdul-Jabbar, the NBA’s All-Time scoring leader as well as a longtime writer and cultural critic, weighed in on James’ legacy in a different way than usual. He suggests that discussions of James should be bigger than the GOAT debate, of whether he is better than Michael Jordan because his impact has gone beyond sport.
One of the reasons Abdul-Jabbar cited was the opening of the I Promise school in Akron, Ohio.
Last year, LeBron helped found the I Promise School in Akron, Ohio, for some of the city’s underprivileged children. More than providing academics, the school will also reach out to the students’ families to provide them resources to improve their lives economically, emotionally and educationally. This kind of dedication to community makes him more heroic than slamming a basketball through a hoop.
James is certainly one of the first people to impress upon people that he hopes to be an impactful figure beyond the world of sports. And for Kareem, a pioneer in athletes using their platform to speak out against injustice, he is making it clear that James has his respect.
