LeBron James reflects on Trayvon Martin’s death

Trayvon Martin was just 17 — the same age LeBron James’ oldest child, Bronny, is now — when he was shot and killed by neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman 10 years ago this week. James’ response to Martin’s death — including a famous tweet of the Miami Heat with their hoodies pulled up — was the start of a public commitment to social activism. “Until you know who you are, it’s hard to speak for other people. Or speak for anything. You got to be comfortable with yourself,” James told ESPN earlier this month when asked about Martin’s death. “I think it’s unfortunate that we, as a society sometimes, we want certain people to talk and we want certain people to [take on issues]. Like, ‘Why aren’t you speaking for [this community]?’ I think for me, when I was younger, I wasn’t in that position to do that.”
Source: Dave McMenamin @ ESPN

What’s the buzz on Twitter?

NBA Math @NBA_Math
RPR MVP Predictor:
1. Nikola Jokic: 17.61
2. Giannis Antetokounmpo: 16.18
3. Joel Embiid: 15.94
4. DeMar DeRozan: 14.87
5. LeBron James: 14.46
6. Luka Doncic: 14.11
7. Trae Young: 13.9
8. Stephen Curry: 13.82
9. Ja Morant: 13.45
10. Chris Paul: 13.17
https://t.co/onGqrEd9sz pic.twitter.com/rmu71sYQ6z – 11:05 AM

Kamenetzky Brothers @KamBrothers
Friday’s @LockedOnLakers podcast! Rich Paul lowers the heat on the LeBron-Lakers tension. What lies ahead post-ASB? Which Lakers not named “LeBron” or “Russ” are most important moving forward? #FirstListen @LockedOnNBAPods @LockedOnNetwork
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ric… – 10:54 AM

Alex Kennedy @AlexKennedyNBA
Who are the NBA’s most marketable players? @ActionNetworkHQ analyzed 20 metrics to come up with an overall “Influence Score” for each player. The leaders:
1. LeBron James, 14.18
2. Steph Curry, 10.67
3. Derrick Rose, 9.29 😳
Check out the top-20 players: basketballnews.com/stories/new-st… – 10:37 AM

Yaron Weitzman @YaronWeitzman
This week’s Starting Five, for @FOX Sports News / @FOXSports, on post-All-Star storylines:
🏀 Beasts in the East
🏀 Draymond’s Status
🏀 MVP Race
🏀 What’s Going on With Zion?
🏀 Return of Passive Aggressive LeBron
youtu.be/u-fSv3HxSWY – 10:29 AM

Dave McMenamin @mcten
New story: 10 years after Trayvon Martin’s senseless death, LeBron James spoke to ESPN about his response at the time and his activism since: “Now I understand that my calling is to inspire others and also to give voices to people that don’t have voices” es.pn/3Ioth1h – 10:13 AM

Kyle Ratke @Kyle_Ratke
New pod! Reacting to last night’s W over the Grizzlies & hopping into the LeBron talk from All-Star weekend: open.spotify.com/episode/4lPHhU… – 10:03 AM

Tommy Beer @TommyBeer
DeMar DeRozan is just the seventh player in NBA history to score at least 35+ points in eight straight games.
Here are the other six players in this club:
Wilt Chamberlain
Elgin Baylor
Michael Jordan
Kobe Bryant
LeBron James
James Harden – 9:26 AM

Tim MacMahon @espn_macmahon
The Hoop Collective with @Brian Windhorst and @Tim Bontemps: Should the Lakers look to trade LeBron this summer? Also: Why it’s so silly for KAT to claim to be the greatest shooting big man ever. m.youtube.com/watch?v=WUAka3… – 9:05 AM

Marla Ridenour @MRidenourABJ
Tribute to King James: LeBron James museum to open in hometown Akron in 2023 @LeBron James @LJFamFoundation beaconjournal.com/story/news/202… via @beaconjournal – 8:57 AM

Chris Sheridan @sheridanhoops
One thing about the #NBA: You never know who comes back from All-Star break ready to play and who does not. Will be interesting to see what the #Lakers look like tonight after making no trades and signing no buyout guys. LeBron questionable again (knee soreness). – 4:51 AM

CBS NBA @CBSSportsNBA
LeBron James had a major problem with Kobe Bryant’s shot selection during 2008 Olympics, per ‘Coach K’ book …
cbssports.com/nba/news/lebro… – 11:47 PM

Kamenetzky Brothers @KamBrothers
A fact that dawned on me while recording Friday’s @LockedOnLakers podcast? The only Laker still on the roster when the Lakers acquired LeBron 3.5 seasons ago is… LeBron. AK – 10:06 PM

Ryan Ward @RyanWardLA
Lakers’ status report for tomorrow’s game against the Clippers – LeBron James is QUESTIONABLE, while Avery Bradley is OUT and Melo is PROBABLE. pic.twitter.com/LCzV84EOqW – 6:13 PM

Ryan Ward @RyanWardLA
Frank Vogel on LeBron’s comments during All-Star Weekend sparking rumors/speculation: “I learned to let the noise be noise. … I enjoyed the break with my family. That’s just noise.” – 5:22 PM

Bob Garcia @bgarciaivsports
LeBron James is dealing with a challenging situation that Michael Jordan didn’t dare to touch.
#Lakers #LakeShow #NBA
sportscasting.com/lebron-james-v… – 4:15 PM

Ben Rohrbach @brohrbach
For @The Vertical: Where smoke surrounds LeBron James, there’s always fire, and there’s an awful lot billowing in L.A.
sports.yahoo.com/le-bron-james-… – 3:52 PM

Sam Amick @sam_amick
ICYMI, my look at the LeBron James situation and why no one in Laker Land should feel comfortable right about now, at @TheAthletic
Promo deal right now: $1/month for six months (through the web browser only; not the app)
theathletic.com/3139321/2022/0… – 2:55 PM

LeBron James @KingJames
Yessir!!!! Who’s ready for the Bronny collection that’s coming with @PSDunderwear??!!! Well I know I am!! Need those ASAP son! Thank you in advance. Lol. Congrats Young 🤴🏾 #ThekidfromAKRON🤴🏾 pic.twitter.com/Qf9mi8tA69 – 2:24 PM

Eric Pincus @EricPincus
Latest @BleacherReport Should Los Angeles Lakers Actually Trade LeBron James? There Are No Easy Answers bleacherreport.com/articles/29538… – 2:23 PM

Bill Oram @billoram
After Magic’s ’91 retirement, @Jeanie Buss prayed to God: “If you ever send us another player like @Magic Johnson, I will never take that player for granted again.” That shaped treatment of Kobe, & will no doubt influence how LA handles LeBron James unrest. theathletic.com/3144921/2022/0… – 1:13 PM

Brad Turner @BA_Turner
The great @Bill Plaschke goes hard in @latimessports on: Plaschke: Lakers must trade LeBron James. It’s their best path forward. latimes.com/sports/lakers/… – 12:26 PM

Bob Garcia @bgarciaivsports
At least one prominent #Lakers insider believes LeBron James will stay with the team beyond his current contract.
#Lakeshow #NBA
sportscasting.com/lakers-insider… – 11:21 AM

More on this storyline

James was 27 at the time and had yet to win any of the four championships he went on to earn with the Heat, Cleveland Cavaliers and Los Angeles Lakers. James, who appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated with the headline “The Chosen One” at 17, was drafted with the No. 1 pick out of high school at 18 and had his signature Nike sneakers flying off the shelves by 19, was still figuring out life in the spotlight after his controversial “Decision” made-for-TV special followed by his first season in Miami ending with a disappointing NBA Finals loss to the Dallas Mavericks. “I grew,” James said. “I grew. And as I grew to know who I am, to know what I want do with my life, to know the family that I have, now I understand that my calling is to be able to inspire others and also be able to give voices to people that don’t have voices.” -via ESPN / February 25, 2022

“It’s never going to stop,” he said. “It’s never going to stop, but that don’t mean we stop. ‘Can’t stop, won’t stop’ is what Diddy says. At the end of the day, we know the turmoil and everything that’s going on. They’re going to look at Black people how they’ve always viewed us: Smile in our face and [act like] it’s fine. “But at the end of the day, we can’t stop. We can’t stop speaking up for things that are unjust. We can’t stop speaking up about things that we feel are wrong — or things that are right. And calling out people that literally are simply just bad people.” -via ESPN / February 25, 2022

His mother, Nicole, is a longtime educator in the New York area. Education is rooted in his genes. But he said his voice on such matters isn’t always welcomed by many in Utah. “It hasn’t been the most receptive. I won’t lie and say it has,” Mitchell told Yahoo Sports. “But that’s what I meant when I said, like, I’m not going to stop. I think for me, part of creating change is having uncomfortable conversations and being uncomfortable. What you choose to do with the information is up to you. I’m going to continue to speak and give knowledge. -via Yahoo! Sports / February 15, 2022