NBA
The one player LeBron James loved more than any other - and it’s not Michael Jordan or Kobe Bryant
The LA Lakers star is celebrating the big four-oh today, December 30, and still going strong in the NBA.
Happy birthday to LeBron James! The Los Angeles Lakers star turns 40 today, December 30. And while he was out with illness for Saturday night’s 132-122 win over the Sacramento Kings, there’s no sign age is slowing the NBA legend down.
In fact, LeBron, the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, claimed another record last week, becoming the NBA’s all-time leader in Christmas Day victories, with 11 in 19 appearances, as the Lakers beat the Golden State Warriors 115-113 in San Francisco.
LeBron’s favorite player growing up
LeBron James was born back in 1984, meaning his formative years were watching what many have hailed as the golden age of basketball, with Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and Shaquille O’Neal, all in action.
But LeBron’s favorite player growing up wasn’t any of them. In fact, it wasn’t even a basketball player.
From an NBA TV interview back in 2022 LeBron James said his fave athlete growing up was none other than baseball player Ken Griffey Jr.
Junior, as he was known, joined the Seattle Mariners in 1989, and quickly established himself as one of the most exciting players in the MLB. In his first spell with the franchise through to 1999 he hit 398 home runs and led the American League for home runs in four seasons (1994, 1997, 1998 and 1999), being voted the A.L. MVP in 1997.
He was also a remarkable fielder, winning 10 straight Gold Gloves from 1990 to 1999, with incredible diving plays and stunning home-run-denying over-the-wall catches.
He left the Mariners to move to the Cincinnati Reds in 2000, where he played for eight seasons, before a brief spell at the Chicago White Sox and then a final return to the Mariners in 2009 and 2010.