Once again, LeBron James has been given an extremely prestigious award. His latest accomplishment: be named the Sportsman of the Year by Sports Illustrated.
In this 2012 year, LeBron has been named the NBA Regular Season MVP (his third), won his first NBA Championship, been named the Finals MVP, and led the new "Dream Team" to a gold medal in Olympic Basketball for the USA. LeBron's 27.1 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 6.2 assists per game drove his 2012 MVP campaign.
LeBron achieved all of this under tremendous scrutiny in his second season with the Miami Heat after he guaranteed 8 championships in his first offseason as a member of the Heat and failed to win in the Finals the previous year against the Dallas Mavericks.
SI SPORTSMAN OF THE
YEAR: LeBRON JAMES
By: Ryan Welte
Add my name to the endless list of names that has declared LeBron as the greatest overall athlete in NBA history. His combination of length, strength, size, basketball IQ, and will power makes him one of the greatest threats to ever step foot on a basketball court. LeBron has spent his offseasons in Miami much differently than in Cleveland, truly mastering elements of his game. He worked with former NBA Champions including Hakeem Olajuwon to help him learn how to become a champion, and it
worked. James worked to upgrade his post game to an elite level and his jumper to become a devastating outside shooter. As LeBron is playing in his tenth year in the NBA, he knows that he will not be able to depend on his athletic ability as much as he could a few years ago. This year we get to see his transition into more of a traditional role rather than the guy who could make a move and dunk the ball every time he touched the ball.
LeBron wants to have just as successful of a 2013 year as a 2012 year. James is fully aware of the next generation of players, and is especially ready for Kevin Durant to challenge him for the rest of his professional career.
"I know that there is someone, somewhere, trying to take my spot," James says. "And I know where he is too. He's in Oklahoma. He's my
inspiration because I see the direction he's headed, and it's the same direction I'm headed. I know his mind-set, and he knows mine. It's a collision course. We're driving one another."
We could see Chapter Two of this rivalry as soon as June. And if LeBron topped Durant for another MVP, Championship, and Finals MVP, we could see him gracing the cover of SI as the Sportsman of the Year again.