LeBron James told the world in 2020 that black lives are important. He helped convince many who had never voted to eventually go to the polls. He found more ways to continue to elevate the lives of people in his hometown.
If that wasn’t enough, he won another NBA championship.
James ’performance on the track this year was spectacular again. A fourth NBA title and fourth MVP trophy in the NBA Finals were his as he lifted the Los Angeles Lakers to the top of basketball. And after a year in which he was brilliant, on and off the track, James was announced Saturday as the winner of The Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year award for the fourth time tying records.
“I still know what I do on the ground and obviously I give it my all in the game,” James told AP. “But right now I can have a bigger impact on the ground, more than on the ground. And I want to keep inspiring people the way they play basketball. But there are a lot more things I can do off the ground to help cultivate the people, inspire her, bring her together and empower her. “
The AP Prize was first awarded in 1931. James’ fourth victory coincided with Lance Armstrong and Tiger Woods for most men. Three women have won the AP award at least four times; Babe Didrikson was a six-time winner, Serena Williams won five and Chris Evert four.
The AP Female Athlete of the Year will be unveiled on Sunday.
No NBA player scored more points or had more assists in 2020 than James. The only other player in your life to lead the league in points and assists the same calendar year? Himself, in 2018.
James also became the first player to be MVP of the NBA Finals for three franchises. He passed Kobe Bryant by No. 3 on the all-time scorecard, doing so a day before Bryant died last January in a helicopter crash; the last tweet Bryant sent was a congratulatory message to James.
“He’s the greatest player the basketball universe has ever seen,” Lakers coach Frank Vogel said of James in October. “And if you think you know it, you don’t know it until you have it around you every day, you’re training it, you see its mind, you see its adjustments, you see the way the group is run. You think you know it “You don’t know.”
James finished with 78 points in the vote of a group of 35 AP clients and editors. Kansas City Chiefs quarterback and current Super Bowl MVP Patrick Mahomes was a close second with 71 points. Seventh Formula 1 champion Lewis Hamilton was a distant third with 14 points.
James, also a male AP athlete from the last decade, also won the annual AP award in 2013, 2016 and 2018. Three-time winner Michael Jordan is the only other basketball player to have won the award. AP more than once.
“He’s one of the greatest sports leaders,” Lakers guard Kyle Kuzma said of James.
This applies on and off the field.
The James Than More a Vote organization attracted more than 42,000 volunteers to work in polling stations for the November election, helped some regain their voting rights, and boosted turnout among black and young voters. .
“The tragic death of George Floyd, everyone had a chance to see it, and they also heard the story of Breonna Taylor, her tragic story and that of Amhmaud Arbery in Georgia … my people have had it enough and I’ve had enough, ”James said. “That’s why I called for action, and with my platform, I thought I could get people to join me.”
He also focused, as always, on his hometown, Akron, Ohio.
The I PROMISE school that opened in 2018 now has more than 450 students from third to sixth grade. When the pandemic closed the school, James and his team made sure students received hot meals at home, even full Thanksgiving meals. This year an affordable housing project has been opened for 50 families. And this month, plans were announced for the Three Thirty House (a gesture with Akron’s area code), detailing how James will offer things like affordable family financial health programs, job training, and a space for community meeting.
“The pandemic has been tough for all of us,” James said. “Regardless of your situation, no matter where you are in life, it’s been tough. And the first thing I thought, in addition to stopping the season, when the success of the pandemic was, ‘What am I going to do for to my children? in my [hometown] at my school? “”
He’s already looking at 2021. The Lakers hope to be candidates again. His remake of “Space Jam” is expected to be released this summer. And James, who turns 36 on Wednesday, has not ruled out playing American basketball again at the Tokyo Olympics on the team that will be coached by Gregg Popovich.
“It’s still possible,” James said. “It’s not a 0% percent chance, I’ll say it. I love coach Pop.”
But when 2020 was over, James allowed himself to reflect on one year like no other.
“It’s a tribute to the people I work with, to the people at my foundation, to the sponsors who continue to support us and what we do and what we strive for,” James said. “It’s amazing. I can’t sit here and say that by the time we stopped in March I thought all of this would happen and we would be in December.”