Fresh Prince of Akron: LeBron cried after fulfilling hometown dream
LeBron James did it for the people of Cleveland.
The Ohio native returned to the Cavaliers in 2014 after winning two titles in Miami, with his sights set on bringing a championship home.
Of course, he accomplished that feat in June when he led the Cavs to their first title, and effectively ended the city's championship drought, which had surpassed a half-century.
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James was understandably overwhelmed with emotion as the Cavs clinched their Game 7 victory - and The Finals - over the Golden State Warriors, hugging teammate Kevin Love while crying tears of joy.
The photo is framed at the team's practice facility, where the four-time MVP sees it often, and is reminded of that moment.
"I didn't cry when Jose Mesa blew the save for the Indians," he told Lee Jenkins of SI. "I didn't cry when Earnest Byner fumbled at the 1 for the Browns. I didn't cry when MJ hit the shot over Craig Ehlo. I would have been pulling for Jordan because that’s who I wanted to be.
"But I'm part of this community and I know what those moments meant. So the first thing I thought about were the fans who waited 52 years. Then I thought about my family. And then I thought about my upbringing, the people who supported me when I didn't have a dime to my name, and my life was a struggle. There were so many emotions - too many to hold onto."
The "struggle" James referred to is his well-documented humble beginnings that saw his single mother, Gloria, raise him on welfare in Akron, Ohio.
"It was a mess. It was survival. There was violence. I saw so much I wouldn't want my kids to see," the 31-year-old father of three explained.
Despite his surroundings at the time, James envisioned greatness.
"I dreamed of being Batman, of making the NBA, of buying a house for my mom, of being the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air - the Fresh Prince of Akron," he said, laughing. "It was as big as I could dream."
As big as those dreams were, he achieved them ... Except for becoming Batman; but King James became the bigger superhero in Cleveland, anyway.