Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports
In a recent interview with LeBron James at a charitable event in his hometown of Akron where he gave away hundreds of bicycles, uniforms and backpack tags to underprivileged children he spoke about the most recent vacancy in the presidency of the National Basketball Players Association and his chances of taking over as executive director.
“The union is definitely going backwards,” said James. “It’s not in a good place right now.”
James has been incredibly vocal throughout this past season about his yearning to become more involved with the union and the need for a change from within its leadership roles. However, he also expressed his concerns as to if he’d have enough time to dedicate to the job that it requires. He said he’d have to discuss with his teammates and weigh his options. But he touched on the fact that the union had gone through a lot of transition in the past few years, and if it’s not him in the position, he hopes it’s someone who feels comfortable in that position and can do the job.
Being the superstar athlete that he is, LeBron’s presence in the union could be instrumental in creating an equal playing ground between players and executives as he is such a well-respected person in the realm of sports.
“I think that my voice could be huge,” said James.
The union’s summer meeting is scheduled for later this month in Las Vegas, and a new executive director could be on the horizon.
