Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James has never shied away from controversy.
Both on and of the court, he does what he wants on his own terms whenever he chooses to do it.
That attitude, coupled with some of his political statements and actions, have earned him the label of being ‘woke’ by his critics.
This week, James broke down in great detail whether he considers himself ‘woke’ or not.
🗣 Accountability in the media is key#TNFinTheShop pic.twitter.com/1n4Pam3pem
— UNINTERRUPTED (@uninterrupted) December 9, 2022
“The media is so quick to hold us athletes – especially Black athletes – accountable,” he said.
“We can’t make mistakes. We can’t do this. They want to bring up everything. I want to hold the media accountable… I’m just holding them accountable and letting them know that I see (them).
“I am definitely ‘woke,’ that’s for sure.”
Reactions to James’ sentiments varied. NBA Twitter is comprised of a diverse population of fans, so that was to be expected.
Whether he is helping pay $27 million so that felons can vote, giving his thoughts on elections or offering his polarizing views on the police – James has made his political affiliations no big secret.
In that respect, his ‘woke’ revelation shouldn’t come as much of a surprise.
The one thing that James hasn’t really spoken about much is the odd racial graffiti case that he was involved in. It received a lot of buzz initially, then everyone suddenly forgot about it.
When the Jussie Smollett incident occurred a few people poked around to see whether there were new updates, but apparently there were not.
— Game 7 (@game7__) December 9, 2022
A resolution on that particular matter would be illuminating.
In any case, James is one of the greatest athletes of all time. His reach and voice transcends that of all of his peers.
On the strength of that alone, this week likely isn’t the last time he will he make a dramatic political statement that causes a stir.
Related: Shaquille O’Neal Reveals Drug He Took Before Lakers Games
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
