The NBA is one of the most influential organizations in the world, and LeBron James and Kyrie Irving are well aware of it.
Back then, seldom NBA superstars would touch a single subject about politics. Now, the modern NBA appears to be a complete opposite with four-time MVP LeBron James and seven-time All-Star Kyrie Irving leading the way.
It has been widely known that James is truly vocal about his political views. With the help of social media, the Los Angeles Lakers superstar managed to let his millions of followers know about his take on certain and highly-sensitive issues such as racism and equality.
In the wake of the killing of Ma'Khia Bryant, the teenager who was shot by a police officer, James fumed at the authorities on social media in a controversial tweet which he later deleted.
As expected, James' act drew mixed reactions but among the most notable ones was from former U.S. president Donald Trump.
According to Trump, James “should focus” on doing what he does best—“basketball” and start helping the NBA recuperate from hitting its “lowest television ratings” in history.
“LeBron James should focus on basketball rather than presiding over the destruction of the NBA, which has just recorded the lowest television ratings, by far, in the long and distinguished history of the League,” Trump told The Hill.
AC Milan forward and legendary striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic also has the same take on James’ involvement with politics.
For Ibrahimovic, professional athletes like them are here to “bring people together” and not to “divide” them like politicians do.
“Athletes and sport unites the world, politics divide it,” Ibrahimovic explained via Marca. “Everyone is welcome in environment, it doesn't matter where you come from. We do everything to bring people together.”
“If I wanted to be a politician, I would do politics, we should only do what we are good at, sports and politics are two different things, if you're smart then you'll understand that,” he added.
To his defense, James insisted that he will never stop talking about what’s going on in his community as he was gifted with a “powerful voice” that could help his people.
“I preach about my people and I preach about equality, social justice, racism, systematic voting, voters’ oppression [and] things that go on in our community,” James said in response to Ibrahimovic’s statement via The Athletic.
“There’s no way I would ever just stick to sports because I understand how this platform and how powerful my voice is,” he added.
Apart from James, his former teammate and Brooklyn Nets point guard Kyrie Irving, is also one of the NBA superstars who has been outspoken about his take on politics.
It can be recalled that Kyrie Irving decided to not join the Nets team for a couple of games earlier this year just because of “personal reasons,” which he later admitted were related to politics as well.
Despite being criticized by cynics, Irving seemed unfazed and is still not shying away from expressing his thoughts on political matters.
In fact, one of his latest tweets once again speaks highly of what he feels about the community.
“My mask is off. Now take yours off. No fear,” Irving wrote.
Initially, people thought Irving was hinting about his recent take on COVID-19. However, he later elaborated about the said tweet and explained:
“’Mask off’ means you stop being something you’re not and stop lying to yourself,” the Nets star explained. “It’s the moment you discover the real you and can walk around with NO FEAR in a society that shows a lot of the masks people wear to hide who they truly are. *nothing COVID rule related!! Relax.”
From the look of it, Irving is again implying that he is encouraging people to not be afraid and do what they think is right for them.
Fortunately for James and Irving, they still manage to be on top of their game regardless of how many political issues they talk about.
To this day, James is still considered as one of, if not the greatest player to ever play the game. Last season alone, “King James” averaged an impressive 25 points, eight assists and eight rebounds per game with a 51% field goal shooting percentage.
Irving, on the other hand, is still one of the best point guards in modern-day NBA, and is a vital piece in the championship-caliber Brooklyn Nets squad.
Despite missing the post-season, “Uncle Drew” finished the 2020-21 regular season with 27 points, six assists and five rebounds per outing.
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