2016 has been quite the year for Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James. He finally brought a ring to his hometown of Cleveland with a finals victory over the Golden State Warriors and has cemented his legacy as a top ten NBA player of all time. He overcame obstacle after obstacle to reach, what right now has to be considered, the peak of his career. The accolades don’t stop there though, as today he was named the 2016 AP Male Athlete of the Year. Following from Tom Withers of the Associated Press:
James, who ended 52 years of sports heartache by bringing Cleveland a championship and used his superstar platform to address social causes, was chosen as The Associated Press 2016 Male Athlete of the Year, an award he won previously in 2013.
Results of the vote by 59 editors from AP member newspapers and customers were announced Tuesday.
James collected 24 first-place votes, beating out a pair of Olympic legends: Michael Phelps (16) and Usain Bolt (9), the fastest men in water and on land who are not accustomed to finishing behind anyone.
Winning AP Male Athlete of the Year is certainly quite the achievement. Also earning the same recognition in 2013 has put him in the same class as Michael Jordan as the only two NBA players to earn the honor twice. James has really been adding to his already remarkable resume recently as he was named Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year and also earned best male athlete honors at the ESPY’s this year.
This type of recognition continues to solidify the unreal legacy LeBron James has built for himself. In only 13 seasons, James has already put his name in the conversation with some of the all-time greats due to accomplishments such as these and various championship rings, MVP trophies, all-star selections and plenty more. LeBron continues to dominate the NBA this season as his Cavaliers have begun the season in high fashion as they have won 23 of their first 30 contests and look to protect their title again come June.
