LeBron James stands atop the sporting world.
The Cleveland Cavaliers forward and reigning Finals MVP has been named Sports Illustrated's Sportsperson of the Year for 2016 after orchestrating one of the greatest comebacks in NBA history with the most electric Finals performance in memory.
He brought a championship to Cleveland, and now @KingJames is a two-time #SISportsperson recipient https://t.co/PettgEPA8q pic.twitter.com/L7u4K5H5lT
— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) December 1, 2016
It's the second time James has earned the distinction, the first being in 2012, after he won his first career title with the Miami Heat. He joins Tiger Woods as the only athletes to win the award multiple times.
"It's an honor," James said after Thursday's shootaround. "For me, it's more about the city of Cleveland. It's more about recognizing the GOAT, Muhammad Ali, for Bill Russell and Jim Brown, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar getting a lifetime achievement award - that's what it's all about."
Russell, Brown, and Abdul-Jabbar will receive the magazine's Muhammad Ali Legacy Award - renamed after the boxer this year - for athletic achievements and social activism.
"I'm more proud that this city, the city of Cleveland, gets to live in joy once again," LeBron continued. "Because as someone who represents this city, for me personally I try to represent it at the most highest respect of the highest level, and this is another opportunity for them to enjoy."
The Akron, Ohio native averaged 29.7 points, 11.3 rebounds, 8.9 assists, 2.6 steals, and 2.3 blocks to help his Cavaliers turn a 3-1 series deficit into a seven-game Finals triumph over the 73-win Golden State Warriors. In so doing, he delivered the city of Cleveland - where he'd returned to play after a bitter departure in 2010 - its first major sports championship in 52 years.
"Cleveland is a big part of the story and a big part of this choice," SI editor-in-chief Chris Stone told Cleveland.com's Joe Vardon. "Had LeBron won anywhere else, in any other city, I'm fairly certain we'd be talking about the Chicago Cubs right now."
When James announced his return to the Cavs in a Sports Illustrated essay (written by Lee Jenkins) in the summer of 2014, he said: "What's most important for me is bringing one trophy back to Northeast Ohio."
Two years later, he brought the Larry O'Brien back.
"He fulfilled his promise of one title to Ohio," Stone said. "He really put his neck out there with his vow in that letter. Obviously, there was some risk putting yourself out there like that. And to deliver in the fashion that he did elevated him to the top of a very strong list."
