ABOUT THE BOOK

Basketball star LeBron James is, at age 27, one of the most famous and celebrated athletes of his generation. Even casual sports fans (and a fair number of non-sports fans) are kept abreast of the latest successes and failures of “King James” and the Miami Heat, thanks to 24–7 media saturation. James is also amongst the most endorsed athletes in sports; his prominent partnerships include Nike, McDonald’s, and Sprite.

Pegged as a future superstar at a very early age, James came into the NBA as a hometown hero, drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers. Somehow, he lived up to the incredible hype, leading the Cavaliers through the most successful period in their franchise history, including a trip to the 2007 NBA Finals, where they were defeated in four games by the San Antonio Spurs. After the 2009–10 season, James’ contact with the Cavaliers ended and he became a free agent.

James began free agency as one of the most popular basketball players in the world. By the time he had made his decision to leave Cleveland and sign with the Miami Heat – a speech he made public on a much-lampooned ESPN special called “The Decision” – he completed an unlikely transformation into one of the most divisive figures in pro sports. By teaming up with fellow All-Stars Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, James set a precedent that would cause ripple effects across the NBA that continue to this day.

MEET THE AUTHOR

Adam McKibbin's work has appeared in a wide variety of magazines and websites, including The Nation, the Chicago Tribune, AlterNet, Paste and Punk Planet. He's worked in web editorial and social media management for years, and is a seasoned interviewer whose favorite subjects include David Lynch, Tori Amos and human rights journalist Mac McClelland. He studied creative writing at the University of Wisconsin and received the Award for Academic Excellence for his collected fiction. He's currently working on his first nonfiction book. Adam lives in Los Angeles with his wife and daughter, and can be found on Twitter at @TheRedAlert.

EXCERPT FROM THE BOOK

LeBron James was born in Akron, Ohio, on December 30, 1984. His mother, Gloria, was a 16-year-old single mother. Just between the ages of 5 and 8, LeBron moved into 12 different homes with his mother, often in tough, dangerous neighborhoods (New York Times, An N.B.A. Giant and How He Grew). Even by that point, at such a young age, it began to seem possible that basketball would be a way out (although some have speculated that James could have also pursued a career in professional football if he’d so desired).

James dominated the youth circuit and by junior high had already formed a tight-knit group of friends/teammates: The Fab Four. They made their decisions together, and so it was that they all wound up at the largely white St. Vincent-St. Mary High School, where they would join forces with Romeo Travis and become the Fab Five. Even this decision wasn’t without controversy.

“To many in Akron’s black community, we were now traitors who had sold out to the white establishment,” James wrote in his memoir (Shooting Stars, co-written by Friday Night Lights author Buzz Bissinger).

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Adam McKibbin

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