LeBron James is viewed by many as being the best player to ever play the great game of basketball. A hot debate has been raging for the past few years about whether James has officially passed Michael Jordan as the greatest NBA player of all-time. Some still believe that Jordan will never be passed, but James has certainly made his name one for the history books.
It was only a matter of time before his hometown, Akron, Ohio, decided to honor him for his success. That time has seemingly come to fruition.
According to a report from ESPN , Akron is currently planning to build a LeBron James statue . That’s right, he would forever be enshrined by his hometown.
Born on December 30, 1984, James has become one of the most iconic people from the great state of Ohio. His NBA career has been nothing short of magnificent. Few players have had the ability or will ever have the ability to produce the kind of numbers that James has throughout his career thus far.
In the 1,143 career games that James has played in the NBA, he has averaged 27.2 points per game to go along with 7.4 rebounds and 7.2 assists. He has also shot 50.4 percent from the field and knocked down 34.4 percent of his three-point attempts. Those numbers show exactly why Akron is considering a statue for their “hometown hero.”
LeBron James needs 6 made FG in Game 4 (8:30 PM ET on ESPN) to pass Kareem for the most in NBA playoff history.
Most FG Made – NBA Postseason History
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 2,356 LeBron James 2,351 Michael Jordan 2,188 Shaquille O’Neal 2,041 pic.twitter.com/zTqdGEiZ5e
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) May 21, 2018
James was asked about the statue plans and sounded very excited that the city was planning it.
“First of all, thank you. It would be cool, not only for myself, but for my family and all the people that had anything to do with this journey thus far. I’m appreciative even of the thought.”
He was also asked if there was any certain pose that he would like the statue to reflect.
“I mean, I don’t know. I don’t have a particular pose in mind. Like I said, I think it’s the thought that counts. It’s pretty cool.”
At 33 years of age, James is playing some of the best basketball of his career. LeBron still appears to be trending towards playing into his 40’s. Once again, that feat is something that very few players have been able to do successfully, assuming he actually does play for another seven seasons.
Rumors have been swirling that James could leave the Cleveland Cavaliers again this offseason. The first time that happened, the entire state of Ohio turned on him. His jerseys were being burned in the streets and his name became something that was whispered instead of shouted from the rooftops.
All of that being said, Akron seems committed to a statue of James and it is something that he deserves in a big way.
