The weird implication is that a black man raised in America has no idea about RACIAL INJUSTICE because he also plays basketball.

State Warriors, Lebron badly twisted his ankle and still managed to pull off a triple double: 33 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists. That’s pretty much the definition of perseverance.

But an effective leader doesn’t just command his followers to victory; he is a leader who helps each of them elevate their individual talents. He becomes the rising tide that lifts all boats. “Leadership isn’t a one-day, two-days or two-month thing; leadership is consistent,” he has said. “Once you get into team sports and you see how you are succeeding, you understand it isn’t about you. In order for you to continue to be successful, everyone has to be important and have something to do with the success.”

Being a leader among ambitious, competitive athletes is not an easy task. I was a leader at UCLA and on the Lakers, and balancing those roles was challenging. Success depends on your teammates respecting you, not just as a player but as a strategist.

But success as an athlete isn’t enough. To laud anyone as a cultural hero, that person would also have to embody as well as promote some of the core values of that culture. Lebron has done that through his outspoken political and social advocacy, especially in support of racial equality. But beyond just talking, he has taken positive actions to better the community and country. This was demonstrated when Fox News’ Laura Ingraham famously reacted to an ESPN interview with Lebron in which he discussed, among many other topics, politics, by complaining, “It’s always unwise to seek political advice from someone who gets paid $100 million a year to bounce a ball. Keep the political comments to yourselves.… Shut up and dribble.”

Instead of just engaging in a social media war, he turned her lame insult into a three-part documentary series for Showtime called Shut Up and Dribble, which explores the evolving role of athletes in today’s divisive political climate. Over the years, Lebron has added his voice to the many athletes of conscience who wish to call attention to social injustices in order to eradicate them.

This “dumb jock” stereotype is the same refrain I and other athletes have heard all our lives from conservatives who use the lowest form of logical fallacy, the ad hominem (name-calling) attack, to distract from the message. The weird implication is that a black man raised in America has no idea