There is no doubt that LeBron James is the biggest basketball star in the world right now. However, with this fame comes jealousy over every little thing the Akron native does. They are annoyed that LeBron James created the Big Three trend in the NBA or always seek a bigger voice for the players. However, no one can deny that he has changed the entire league.
LeBron James’ influence now extends beyond the basketball court
Sports Insider once released a map of the most hated players by state in the US. By using an algorithm to analyze tweets, hashtags or statuses with phrases about degrading an NBA player such as “I hate player A”, “Player B is so bad”, etc. After analyzing a sample of more than 70,000 tweets, hashtags and statuses as mentioned above, Sports Insider came to a rather interesting conclusion.
According to the analysis, Lebron James was “honored” to receive the title of the most hated player in America with 24 states showing extreme hostility towards the Ohio native. The Los Angeles Lakers player was hated from the West Coast to the East Coast. It is very funny that a state in the far north bordering the North Pole with a population of only 731,545 people like Alaska also showed dislike for LeBron James.
LeBron James has the largest number of anti-fans among NBA players
The fact that LeBron James is hated across America is not too difficult to understand and can be explained clearly. There are two main reasons why King James is disliked by fans, one is the superstar’s performance against the team representing their state and the second is his personal life.
The second aspect is personal life, this is a rather sensitive issue but can also be explained logically. NBA fans up to this point all know that LeBron James is a player who is very diligent in participating in social and political activities. He is a big voice representing the African-American community and especially for the players. Therefore, if you pay attention, the Western states that are anti-LeBron all have a majority of middle-class white population such as Oregon, Utah, Nebraska, …
LeBron James’ voice is quite controversial.
However, according to former Golden State coach Mark Jackson, LeBron James has done nothing wrong in his career from a personal perspective. Including creating the super team trend or the trend of having a bigger voice for players. During an appearance on the show Club Shay Shay, the former coach born in 1965 emphasized that the Lakers star has made all players realize that they can control their own destiny.
“LeBron James changed basketball and he doesn’t get any credit for it. LeBron changed things not only as a basketball player but also as a businessman. He showed every player what they had in their hands. That power is nothing more than making decisions that benefit your career.”
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Mark Jackson explains the influence of LeBron James
Not stopping there, Mark Jackson used Kevin Durant as a typical example of a player who knows how to follow LeBron James’ example: “Look at how Kevin Durant decided to go to the Golden State Warriors to win a championship. Then he left to join the Brooklyn Nets. All of those decisions are fine. People realize that they can control their future and their legacy. That’s why they have to know how to make moves that benefit themselves.”
It is clear that LeBron James’s actions off the court have had a profound impact on the NBA and especially the players. Although the results may have brought about an imbalance in the league for a period of time, it cannot be denied that the star born in 1984 has truly “empowered” the players. That is perhaps the true value of the nickname “The King”.
