Why Isiah Thomas is saying LeBron James is “the greatest player to ever play the game”

LeBron James’ ability to represent the NBA, the African-American community, his family and himself with the character becoming of a king make him “the greatest player to ever play the game”.

Following LeBron James’ poignant response to the vandalizing of his home that investigators are calling a hate crime, former Detroit Pistons point guard and Hall of Famer Isiah Thomas called James “the greatest player to ever play the game”.

It’s important to note that Thomas’ assessment wasn’t based entirely on James’ abilities on the hardwood, although at the moment, the current King of the NBA has seemingly mastered the game. What Thomas is speaking about is also James’ ability to empower the African-American communities with his platform.

Speaking at length about the events, he embraces the events because it sheds the light on racism and what it is “being Black in America.”

"“No matter how much money you have, no matter how famous you are, no matter how many people admire you, being black in America is tough..  and we got a long way to go… for us as a  society and us as African-Americans ’til we feel equal in America,”"

Think about this. James is not just a celebrity, he’s a role model, a community builder, a philanthropist. He evokes the Medici family and patrons of the arts during the Renaissance, the images of a gladiator with exemplary morals.

Or, as Thomas said, the Muhammad Alis, Kareem Abdul-Jabbars and the Bill Russells of the world. An individual who wasn’t just the best in their sport but a beacon of inspiration and understanding for the black community.

He’s spoken out about the death of 18-year-old Mike Brown in 2014. Brown was shot while unarmed by a police officer who wasn’t even charged with the crime of murder by the grand jury.

When he hasn’t known all of the details he hasn’t been afraid to admit so, showing what you could call a desire to always be correct in his words. Which, is a quality character any person. Especially a leader.

All the while, he’ll urge people to look past what he has to say about the comments because it’s not about one life, or one voice. He’s spoken out about the shooting death of Aavielle Wakefield, a 5-month-old baby girl, in 2015. He took a stand beside his friends, Dwyane Wade, Carmelo Anthony and Chris Paul last year during the ESPY’s to give a heartfelt, but necessary, speech.

I can’t think of another athlete that’s been as outspoken as James has been, or done so much for the education of the youth like James has.

He’s starting schools for at-risk kids, funding scholarships for his hometown college, the University of Akron, sending children and parents through high school and to college with the LeBron James Family Foundation.

He’ll be going to school at the University of Akron after being one of the last and certainly the most memorable prep-to-pro players in NBA history.

Yet even he’s subject to the same type of racism as anybody else.

It’s not classicism.

It’s not elitism.

It’s racism.

As I sit here and write this I’m glad that there’s a role model like James that exists and for all of his basketball talent, the greatest thing about him may be his role in society. He’s a mouthpiece of the people. He’s the world’s greatest athlete.

Because of all of these things, he has the best ability to be heard and seen by everybody. The global ambassador for Nike, a global icon.

Michael Jordan never took that role on as a player and only recently did he start speaking out. Every voice sending a positive message is beneficial for the cause but he doesn’t get a pass from me for not speaking on social issues during his playing career. I don’t hold it against him but it’s fair to say I hold James in a higher esteem; his character and his conscience have led to him being the symbol of the American Dream as we know it.

He was just a kid from the inner-city, from Akron.

Now he’s “the greatest player to ever play the game” and that’s not just be because of his basketball brilliance. It’s because he has supported the African-American community like family and represented the African-American community with pride, grace and courage.

Related Story: LeBron James' home vandalized

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