LeBron James said in an interview in 2010 that he hated the city of Cleveland growing up. It was right after he had made “The Decision” to leave the Cavaliers and join the Miami Heat.
James was public enemy No. 1 in Cleveland at the time, with fans burning his jersey and calling him a quitter. “The King” was sick and tired of the Cavaliers’ front office and ownership. He even told J.R. Moehringer of GQ Magazine that he hated Cleveland when he was growing up in Akron.
“It’s not far, but it is far,” James said. “And Clevelanders, because they were the bigger-city kids when we were growing up, looked down on us. … So we didn’t actually like Cleveland. We hated Cleveland growing up. There’s a lot of people in Cleveland we still hate to this day.”
Taking his talents to South Beach was the right move for LeBron James. He helped the Miami Heat make the NBA Finals four consecutive times, winning two championships along the way. Despite the way he left the Cleveland Cavaliers, James returned in the summer of 2015.
In his second stint in Cleveland, “The King” led them to four straight NBA Finals appearances against the Golden State Warriors. They lost three times but won the sweetest one in 2016, coming back from a 3-1 deficit.
James would leave Cleveland for a second time in 2018 by joining the LA Lakers. He won another championship in Hollywood and was linked to a potential return to the Cavaliers last season.
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LeBron James is from Akron, not Cleveland
Some people might think that Cleveland is the hometown of LeBron James. It’s not, because he’s from Akron, a city 40 minutes south of Cleveland. That’s why one of his nicknames is “The Kid from Akron.”
In an interview with the Los Angeles Times before the 2022 All-Star Weekend in Cleveland, James reminded everyone that he’s from Akron. He explained that he’s not treating his return to Cleveland as a homecoming.
“People always say, ‘You’re going back home,'” James said. “But I tell people all the time, ‘I’m not from Cleveland.’ There’s no disrespect to Cleveland. But, when you’re from Akron, you’re not from Cleveland. This is where I’m from.”
James was born and raised in Akron by a single mother. He went to St. Vincent-St. Mary High School, where he was a basketball prodigy. He was drafted first overall by the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2003 and would go on to become one of the greatest players in NBA history.
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