LeBron James Said He Wants To Be ‘Best Of All Time’

LeBron James finally won his first NBA ring this past season, but the dynamic forward doesn’t want to stop there.

After a season in which he won the title, MVP, and Finals MVP, LeBron James told The Associated Press that he still wants more, and plans to become the best player of all time.

“I want to be the best of all time,” James said. “It’s that simple.”

LeBron James said that has been his goal all along, and winning a championship with the Miami Heat hasn’t changed that.

“Not really, honestly,” James said. “I haven’t had much time to really just think about what actually happened. At the end of the day, there’s still going to be people that say, well, he’s not going to be able to win two. He’s not going to be able to do it again.”

But even given the high expectations LeBron James has faced from an often-critical media, the star decided to do something a bit out of character this summer, The Associated Press noted:

“So this summer — partly because of the desire to win another ring, partly because of his incessant need to silence doubters, partly because it’s just who he is — James took very little time off. He went straight from the finals to the Olympics, then rested briefly before getting back in the gym. James arrived at camp in essentially the same shape as he ended last season.”

The time off could be as much for mental recharging as physical. Since joining the Heat in 2010, LeBron James has been viewed as one of the league’s biggest villains. His decision to leave the Cleveland Cavaliers for Miami on a nationally televised broadcast didn’t sit well with many fans, and throughout his two seasons with the heat LeBron has faced vocal opposition.

As the team failed to win in his first season, pressure mounted on LeBron, but that all ended with his win last year.

“The best thing about last year is we got all the way to the mountaintop and then we crossed over,” LeBron James said. “So now I know what it takes to get there and actually get over the top of that mountain.”

LeBron James could have a chance to cement his legacy as the greatest player of all time on one of the NBA’s biggest stages. ESPN has reported that he could join the Los Angeles Lakers in 2014, after he can become a free agent.