4 rings, 20 All-Star appearances, the NBA’s all-time leading scorer – safe to say LeBron James didn’t do too badly in his 21-year NBA career. Now at 39, he’s on his way to represent Team USA in a few days at the 2024 Paris Olympics, and yet, he has that one honor that eluded him for years. But that won’t be the case anymore as LeBron is set to get the privilege every athlete dreams of, which left his wife, Savannah James, beaming with pride back home in the USA.
It was confirmed on Sunday that LeBron James will be the first USABMNT player to be the flag bearer of Team USA in the Paris Olympics. An excited Savannah James took to social media to share the news through her IG story. Savannah did not use any words for her husband but left three heart-colored emojis in a sequence to resemble a French flag to represent the Olympics. In the video, Stephen Curry is seen giving a speech to nominate LeBron for the role. “On behalf of the entire Men’s Olympic Basketball team, we would like to nominate LeBron James to be the flag bearer for all of Team USA. He got that honor so wave the flag in Paris my man,” Curry said.
LeBron’s words were not clearly audible due to the ensuing claps from his teammates following Steph’s speech, but his motion indicated a sign of appreciation. LeBron’s first Olympic Games experience was in 2004. Incidentally, the Team USA flag bearer that year was also a basketball player, Dawn Staley, from the women’s team. In 2008, the honor went to Lope Lomong, the distance runner. And in 2012, the flag bearer was fencer Mariel Zagunis. Now that the responsibility is on LeBron, the announcement came as a moment of fulfilment for Savannah James. She has been with LeBron throughout his NBA and USA journey as a constant source of encouragement. So yes, this was a big deal for Savannah as well.
The mother of three James juniors, Savannah has been the driving force of the household for the past 11 years. It has been a long journey for her and LeBron, so long that even their son, Bronny, will be making his NBA debut in a few months. But no family is perfect without a bit of bickering and the case applies to the James family as well.
LeBron James’ Olympics duty deprived Savannah James of her yearly need.
Irrespective of LeBron James’ success on the court, a yearly trip during the offseason has become somewhat of a norm for the James family. LeBron did turn his attention to his family as he was seen attending his son’s games and partied in the club like there was no tomorrow. After that it was the turn for the vacation, but this year that plan was thwarted due to the Lakers star’s Olympic calling. To share her grumpiness, Savannah shared a video on her IG story to describe her mood and captioned it “Mentally here..”
But by now, that mood has surely petered out. With LeBron given the prestigious role of the flag bearer, the moment on July 27 will be a memorable one for Savannah when her husband will lead a team of almost 600 athletes in the parade along the Seine River.
