Basketball icon, LeBron James says his achievements in basketball will not define his legacy as he closes in on a fourth NBA title if his club side Los Angeles Lakers beat Miami Heat this Friday.
A win would add to the two titles he won with Miami Heat and his single success with the Cleveland Cavaliers but Lebron who has been very vocal against racism and police brutality says he doesn’t live his life thinking about legacy from basketball.
“The story will be told how it’s supposed to be told and written how it’s meant to be written,” said James.
The 35-year-old added: “I don’t live my life thinking about legacy.
“What I do off the floor means more to me than what I do on the floor.”
James used his voice to highlight controversial issues, such as the shooting of African-American woman Breonna Taylor by police officers in March.
This week his image was used in front of cereal boxes in the US alongside pictures of children from the school he founded two years ago.
The two-time Olympic gold medallist said such moments are among “the best of my life”.
“The game of basketball will pass me by,”.
“How I move, walk, what I preached and talk about, and how I inspire the next generation is what matters to me the most. If you appreciate my game – cool, if you didn’t, then that’s cool too.”
Lakers legend Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna were among nine people killed in a helicopter crash in January. If James helps the Lakers to the NBA title it will be their first title since 2010, when the late Kobe Bryant led the team to success.
On Friday the Lakers will switch their traditional gold colours and compete in ‘Black Mamba’ jerseys – a strip named after the nickname Bryant used.
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“It has the snake mamba print on it and it means something, something more than just a uniform,” added James.
“It represents an individual who gave the franchise 20 years of blood, sweat, tears and dedication on and off the court to make the franchise proud of him. I think it’s just pretty cool when you’re wearing a uniform that a legend had his hands on.”
