This NBA superstar has many basketball achievements behind his name and is known for many great things. A lot of people consider him to be one of the greatest players of all time, and he’s named in the same breath as prestigious players like Michael Jordan. He’s also the youngest player ever to be drafted into the NBA at the tender age of only 18. This was only the beginning of great things, so let’s take a look at the interesting life of a living legend and his sweetheart, Savannah.
This Is Where it Started
On the second to last day of the year 1984, a young mother from Akron, Ohio, gave birth to a healthy boy. The young mother, Gloria Marie James, named him her newborn boy LeBron, which roughly translates to “the brown-haired one.”
Unfortunately, Gloria James had to raise that little boy all by herself, with only the help of her mother. But regardless of the absence of a father figure, she raised him to become a person everyone wants to know.
A Single Parent
With her mother’s passing when she was only 19, Gloria had to raise the boy alone, and he was now just over two years old. This meant no more help from anybody, so she had to care for a little boy on her own.
While going from one neighborhood to the next in Akron, finding a job was difficult, so life became quite challenging. This was when she decided that she needed to move to a place where there’d be some stability for her and the boy.
An Unstable Life
While they were living in Akron, they moved around a lot, and often they stayed with friends. This made him change schools regularly, and he lost nearly half of the year while traveling from one place to another.
At this time of his life, he found comfort in sports and started playing pee wee football for the South Side Rangers. This team, where he found sanctuary, was coached by Frank Walker, who decided to look out for the family.
The New Place
When Frank Walker and his wife Pam heard that the young mother was looking for a new place, he made her an offer. So, they moved in with the Walkers and became part of a healthy home environment where a child could grow up.
Frank and his wife asked Gloria to move in with them until she found something permanent for her and her child. This was the best thing that could happen for the little boy who was struggling to find his place in life.
First Introduction to Sports
A great opportunity was given to LeBron by Frank, who was the coach of the youth football team. When he was still in fourth grade, he joined the team and became friends and teammates with Frank Walker Jr.
This was a great way for the energetic young boy to find his feet and become part of a team. Becoming part of something that meant a lot to him was only the beginning of a new era in his life.
What Changed
When LeBron James was nine years old, he was introduced to basketball by his coach and mentor, and that changed everything. After his first taste of basketball, there was no stopping this young player, and he played whenever he could.
His first introduction was joining the first rec-league basketball team, the Summit Lake Community Center Hornets. This was where he belonged, James was in his element now, and things just started happening for this young athlete.
Shooting Star
Just one year after joining the team of Frank Walker, LeBron James joined the Shooting Stars basketball team. This was a traveling youth league basketball team and was part of the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) from Northeast Ohio.
This team became both a local and national hit and showed that LeBron was an exceptional player. Life was becoming great for the young boy who had recently struggled to stay ahead with his schoolwork.
The Fab Four
It was playing for this team that LeBron and three of his teammates became known as the Fabulous Four. They were LeBron James, Sian Cotton, Willie McGee, and Dru Joyce, who led their basketball team.
These four also became best friends off the court and ended up in the same high school after a mutual decision. They all chose to attend the private school, St. Vincent-St. Mary high school.
How They Came Together
While LeBon was playing in the Summit Lake community team, Dru Joyce or Little Dru was playing at the Ed Davis Community Center team. They practiced together at the Salvation Army gym and soon started playing together in the traveling Youth League team.
Cotton, who was a football and baseball player, was persuaded to play basketball and joined them soon after. When McGee moved from Chicago to live with his older brother, he joined their team. With the addition of McGee, the group was complete.
Great Things Await
When joining this school, the first thing that Lebron did was join the many different sports teams played with a ball. LeBron became a favorite in both the football and basketball teams, where he dominated in all aspects.
Unfortunately, he had an injury while playing football, making him focus more on playing basketball than the other. According to expert sports analysts, if it weren’t for that, LeBron would easily have been chosen to play in the NFL.
Savannah
Savannah was born on August 27th, 1986 as the youngest daughter of JK and Jennifer Brinson. She was one of five children and, being the youngest, was raised by all members of the family.
She grew up in a stable and healthy environment with parents who taught her the better values of life. This made her appreciate many things and made her care not just about her close family but also about those who are in need.
An Open Home
As long as Savanah can remember, her parent’s house was always open to those who needed a place or any help. Her parents were always taking care of others who were in need.
These were some of the values she learned from her parents, which made her the person she is today. Any kid or friend of her two brothers and two sisters who had some kind of trouble or need was always welcome in their home.
A Great Athlete
While she was a member of the cheerleading squad, Savannah Brinson was also quite an accomplished athlete in her own right. She also grew up in Akron and was in a rival school in the area where LeBron was born and raised.
She was part of her school’s softball team and had quite a busy social life at the age of 16. At that time, she knew nothing of the popular basketball player just a few miles away.
LeBron and Savannah Meet
He was only 17, and she was 16 when they met, making them the first famous couple from Akron, Ohio. When asked much later, LeBron could still remember what color clothes she wore that first day they met.
They first met when Savanah was a high school sophomore and LeBron was attending a rival school; they became high school sweethearts after that. She remembered that he had asked a friend for her number and she decided that she would take his phone number.
Get the Courage
According to LeBron, he didn’t have the courage to ask her out at first and asked a friend to be his wingman. Even though they were in rival schools, that didn’t bother him, and he decided to go after her anyway.
Even though he didn’t muster the courage to ask her out, they eventually became a couple and have been ever since. Many fans and the press say they are the first power couple coming from the same highly competitive area.
The Wingman
Fortunately for LeBron, the wingman dared to ask for Savannah’s number on his behalf and passed it on. Savannah recalled she first thought to say no and ask for his number instead, so she could decide whether or not she wanted to meet him.
It didn’t take long for her to make a move and give him a call, which according to her, wasn’t a dramatic decision. She recalled she had the number of a boy and decided to call him and see how it went.
A Local Hotshot
Because they were both athletes, LeBron asked her to attend one of the basketball games he was playing. She was quite surprised to find out that he was very talented and that he was a local hotshot at his high school.
After that match, she joined him and his team at a local Applebee’s, where they could get to know each other better in a friendly environment. This was the beginning of a years-long relationship that just got better over time.
First Official Date
For high schoolers, their first date was quite a decent feat; he took her out for an Outback Steakhouse dinner. According to Savannah, the date was very good but what impressed her most was the deed of chivalry after dinner.
She had her leftovers packed in a takeaway bag but forgot to take them with her. Luckily, he saw that she’d missed the bag and took care of it by bringing it to her.
A Real Gentlemen
LeBron James was a real gentleman and respected her parents’ rules by staying within the curfew set by them. He was wise enough to know that winning the favor of her parents was the best way to earn the girl’s respect.
LeBron made sure that her family knew that he was quite serious about Savannah and obeyed their rules. He brought her home in time and tried not to get on the bad side of her father.
Personality Won Her Over
Even though LeBron was quite a hotshot at his high school, his talent wouldn’t win her heart. She wasn’t interested in anything other than his personality and him being himself; that’s what made him attractive to her.
She didn’t need any fans or the spotlight or a big bank account to make her fall for this young athlete. She stuck with him right from the start, and they grew together into a great couple.
New to the NBA
In 2003, LeBron James was not yet 19, and he was already a top pick in the NBA draft. This was a big year for him, not just because it was his senior year in high school but also for his basketball future.
He was destined for greater things than just being the hotshot basketball talent of his high school. Before he could get his bearings, he played for the Cleveland Cavaliers, which started his big-league life.
Much Higher Expectations
This was not junior or high school basketball, this was the big leagues, and much more was expected from LeBron James. Being the youngest rookie placed much more pressure on this talented player, even someone as talented as LeBron.
He was becoming an adult very quickly, much faster than was expected of most 18-year-old boys who’d just started senior year. But that was to become even worse with the newest event happening in the life of LeBron James and Savannah Brinson.
Expecting
The pressure on LeBron was getting even stronger when he received the news that Savannah was expecting a baby. Everything happened at once; he was now a senior in high school, became the youngest ever top pick draft for the NBA, and now this.
With life getting a lot more complicated and intense, his first season in the NBA was about becoming very busy. But being the professional athlete that he is, he withstood the pressure and supported his high school sweetheart.
Keep it Together
By the time it was prom for the 18-year-old Savannah, she was already five months into her pregnancy. She designed the dress to hide the bump, but she said afterward that she looked terrible. Luckily, that’s just her opinion.
The design was quite fashionable at that time, so nobody noticed that she was hiding something from them. They both got through this and became better people and a baby richer, even though she was quite nervous.
She Was Scared
She was scared to tell her parents that she was expecting a baby and what it would do to LeBron’s new NBA career. LeBron put her mind to rest with the assurance that they’d get through this together, no matter what.
LeBron told her that this wouldn’t slow them down and that they’d keep doing what they were doing. This put her mind at ease, so she told her parents about it and everything worked out just fine.
