Lebron James Admits Using Pot

[Ryan]

James admits pot use in book
July 23, 2009
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=4350557

LEVELAND -- LeBron James struggled with sudden fame after appearing on Sports Illustrated's cover as a 17-year-old and admits he smoked marijuana during his junior year in high school.

Those are two of the revelations in a book chronicling James' rise from Akron, Ohio, hoops prodigy to NBA superstar.

In "Shooting Stars," written by James and co-author Buzz Bissinger, James said the SI cover and the media attention he and his high school teammates received was difficult to handle.

"We had become big-headed jerks, me in particular," James said, "and we are to blame for that, but so are adults who treated us that way and then sat back and smugly watched the self-destruction."

In the book, scheduled for release in September, the NBA's reigning MVP recounts the media circus that enveloped his final two years at St. Vincent-St. Mary High School following his SI cover appearance. James said he and close friends Dru Joyce, Sian Cotton, Romeo Travis and Willie McGee -- nicknamed the Fab Five -- became "rock stars" and took advantage of their celebrity.

"I was arrogant, dubbing myself "The Chosen One," James said. "In hindsight, I should have kept quiet, but I also was what I was, a teenager where every reporter in the world seemed to be rushing toward me at once."

James also revealed he and his teammates smoked marijuana one night after getting access to a hotel room in Akron.

James feels he was unfairly targeted by the media, which he described as "excited spectators at a car crash" after it was learned that his mother, Gloria, obtained a loan to buy him a $50,000 Hummer for his birthday. He said the scrutiny was humiliating for his mother, who was living with him in a rental-assistance apartment.

"Was the vehicle excessive, with its bank of three televisions? Maybe. Probably. Of course it was," James said. "So were the BMWs parked in the St. V lot, belonging to fellow students. But nobody ever questioned those."

James also recounts being suspended by the Ohio High School Athletic Association for accepting two throwback jerseys as gifts from a Cleveland area clothing store. He describes the OHSAA as "ravenous" and is highly critical of former commissioner Clair Muscaro.

James said Muscaro, whose suspension of him was later reduced in court, wanted to put James and his school "in our place. ... "this was a witch hunt, one-man posse's attempt to humiliate me, subject me to ridicule, rip open rumors that I was corrupt and ruin a dream."

James said the experiences drew he and his friends closer and proved to be valuable life lessons, many of which he attributes to "karma."

James and Bissinger focus almost entirely on James' final two years of high school and do not delve into his early career with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Bissinger is best known for "Friday Night Lights," a bestseller on Texas' obsession with high school football.

 

[kingsnation]

"Using," and "Used," are two very different words.

 

[Ryan]

Look, I have nothing against someone trying pot in high school, whatever. But I DO have a problem with James's recurring theme of blaming all his failures on someone else!!! It's NEVER his fault. It wasn't he fault that he didn't shake Orlando's hands, and now it's not his fault because THE MEDIA pressured him too much in high school!! What is up with my generation?? You smoked pot, I'm glad you admitted it, now man up and own it. If the media supposedly "sat back and smugly watched the self-destruction" then why do you still deal with them? God this kid pisses me off.

 

[kingsnation]

But I DO have a problem with James's recurring theme of blaming all his failures on someone else!!! It's NEVER his fault.

We live in a culture that rewards and supports this attitude. We live in a culture where NOBODY takes responsibility for their actions/circumstances. Whether it's suing because your coffee was too hot or "I act a certain way because of person a or situation b, or even "I didn't know it was a banned substance."

This generation knows no accountability, and when someone does try to keep anyone accountable, they come up with the above excuses.

 

[OptimusRhyme]

omg the sky is falling

 

[MassachusettsKingsFan]

An athlete ( or anyone ) smoking pot in high school doesnt mean a whole lot, but on a unrelated note - Im starting to really dislike Lebron.

 

[coolhandluke]

We live in a culture that rewards and supports this attitude. We live in a culture where NOBODY takes responsibility for their actions/circumstances. Whether it's suing because your coffee was too hot or "I act a certain way because of person a or situation b, or even "I didn't know it was a banned substance."

This generation knows no accountability, and when someone does try to keep anyone accountable, they come up with the above excuses.

Hey, passing the blame is a survival skill in this culture. You don't have to go to business school to know it.

 

[Merdiesel]

"Using," and "Used," are two very different words.

The word "using" in general is a complete bull**** when talking about weed.

People use heroin, the don't use weed. Just more paranoia bs.

I'll definitely side with arguably the two greatest athletes on the planet right now (Phelps and James) on this subject. In 20 years, people will laugh at these over reactions.

 

[MoneyMike916]

nothing new. he's admitted this before

December 10, 2002

..."People ask me if it's a hard decision going to the NBA, but I've made harder decisions," he says. "Decisions about smoking or going to school, or stealing from a store or not stealing. Those are harder decisions. Yeah, I smoked weed. When it's around family, around friends, of course you want to try it. I tried it a couple of times. But when you get on the court and your wind ain't there, that's when you've got to just stop doing it. So the NBA decision ain't a hard decision compared to that."...

http://espn.go.com/magazine/vol5no26next.html

 

[VF21]

Look, I have nothing against someone trying pot in high school, whatever. But I DO have a problem with James's recurring theme of blaming all his failures on someone else!!! It's NEVER his fault. It wasn't he fault that he didn't shake Orlando's hands, and now it's not his fault because THE MEDIA pressured him too much in high school!! What is up with my generation?? You smoked pot, I'm glad you admitted it, now man up and own it. If the media supposedly "sat back and smugly watched the self-destruction" then why do you still deal with them? God this kid pisses me off.

Yep. You can own your mistakes or you can point the finger elsewhere. It's pretty clear which path Lebron James has selected.

 

[acisking]

Actually LeBron admitted that he had tried marijuana in 2002 in an ESPN the magazine interview. This is a terrible example of double reporting by ESPN and even worse that they list it as some sort of breaking news, considering that he already admitted to pot use to ESPN themselves 7 years ago (while he was in high school).

 

[Bricklayer]

Actually LeBron admitted that he had tried marijuana in 2002 in an ESPN the magazine interview. This is a terrible example of double reporting by ESPN and even worse that they list it as some sort of breaking news, considering that he already admitted to pot use to ESPN themselves 7 years ago (while he was in high school).

And considering that all of this information comes from a book that Lebron co-authored. This isn't making an excuse for something coming up in his past, this is Lebron introducing the idea himself, for the second time.

 

[Ryan]

The word "using" in general is a complete bull**** when talking about weed.

People use heroin, the don't use weed. Just more paranoia bs.

I'll definitely side with arguably the two greatest athletes on the planet right now (Phelps and James) on this subject. In 20 years, people will laugh at these over reactions.

I know, my mistake on the choice of words.

Remember I'm not making a big deal over the fact that he tried pot, just pointing out that he blames other people. It's a big pet peeve of mine.

 

[kennadog]

I know, my mistake on the choice of words.

Remember I'm not making a big deal over the fact that he tried pot, just pointing out that he blames other people. It's a big pet peeve of mine.

Big pet peeve of mine, too. Really irks me.

 

[Rookie]

I wonder how mature people are when they were at his age?

I'm disappointed with what have happened this season on the dunk, the hand shake and now this but I hope he learns from this.

He's only 23 I think...that's like learning to be a man age. If he continue to do this by in his late 20's than yeah he should be hammered on. But for now I give the guy a break, especially when he doesn't have a father figure to preach about being a man.

 

[pdxKingsFan]

We live in a culture that rewards and supports this attitude. We live in a culture where NOBODY takes responsibility for their actions/circumstances. Whether it's suing because your coffee was too hot or "I act a certain way because of person a or situation b, or even "I didn't know it was a banned substance."

This generation knows no accountability, and when someone does try to keep anyone accountable, they come up with the above excuses.

I agree with everything else you say (and most people here about lack of accountability), but if you aren't aware of the facts of this case its worth checking out. Not every law suit is bogus.

 

[Merdiesel]

I know, my mistake on the choice of words.

Remember I'm not making a big deal over the fact that he tried pot, just pointing out that he blames other people. It's a big pet peeve of mine.

oh I was directing my comment the writer, not at you.

...and I totally agree with what your saying in terms of him passing the blame.

 

[kennadog]

I wonder how mature people are when they were at his age?

I'm disappointed with what have happened this season on the dunk, the hand shake and now this but I hope he learns from this.

He's only 23 I think...that's like learning to be a man age. If he continue to do this by in his late 20's than yeah he should be hammered on. But for now I give the guy a break, especially when he doesn't have a father figure to preach about being a man.

Many people aren't any more mature at that age than James. That isn't the point. It isn't even the point when you are old and and assumed to be mature (not always true). What matters is what you do after you've made the mistake or error in judgement. I can't speak for Ryan, but I want to see a person admit the mistake was their mistake. Accept the responsibility for it. It's up to other people to accept their responsibility, not for me to lay blame on them on them for my behavior.

 

[xyrin]

They need to just legalize it already so we don't have to make a big deal out of athletes doing it.

 

[VF21]

He's only 23 I think...that's like learning to be a man age. If he continue to do this by in his late 20's than yeah he should be hammered on. But for now I give the guy a break, especially when he doesn't have a father figure to preach about being a man.

I need to preface the comment to follow. It is directed at your post and NOT you.

Having made the requisite disclaimer, I will say...

Oh, good. A couple of more excuses for Lebron to use:

1. He's still learning to be a man.
2. He didn't have a father figure.

Horse pucky. I simply don't buy into either excuse. He made bad choices. He should own up to them and move on. Does he? Nope, he makes excuses. Suck it up, Lebron, grow up and BE the man. The youth of today will be much better served if their role model admits his mistakes and shows how he learned from them than they'll be by seeing yet another idol with feet of clay pointing the finger everywhere except at the face in the mirror.

 

[VF21]

They need to just legalize it already so we don't have to make a big deal out of athletes doing it.

While that is probably a valid topic for debate on some forums, it falls into one of the topics we do not discuss.

 

[Padrino]

I need to preface the comment to follow. It is directed at your post and NOT you.

Having made the requisite disclaimer, I will say...

Oh, good. A couple of more excuses for Lebron to use:

1. He's still learning to be a man.
2. He didn't have a father figure.

Horse pucky. I simply don't buy into either excuse. He made bad choices. He should own up to them and move on. Does he? Nope, he makes excuses. Suck it up, Lebron, grow up and BE the man. The youth of today will be much better served if their role model admits his mistakes and shows how he learned from them than they'll be by seeing yet another idol with feet of clay pointing the finger everywhere except at the face in the mirror.

meh...

everybody's a hypocrite in some respect. nobody's blameless. finger-pointing at the face in the mirror is always a healthy thing for an individual, but society as a whole would be better served if we, collectively, pointed back. why should athletes be considered role models in the first place? they exist in a fantasy world. they are part of a closed system. for the most part, the athletes we idolize are given exorbitant amounts of money at a very young age. excuses or not, there's a maturity level that NO young man or woman in their early twenties has when it comes to dealing with this level of fame and adoration. the pressure is enormous. its quite literally as big as it gets for someone like lebron james, because he's a global phenomenon. that can't be underestimated or discounted. he's one of the biggest stars in the entire world, and still very, very young. i'm a year younger than lebron james, and most days i'm still trying to figure out what it means TO ME to be a man. in a year, am i gonna know? i doubt it, and why should i expect lebron james to know?

is the absurd amount of money he makes some kind of barometer for manhood? is being in front of a camera a part of that barometer? or how about taking part in mandatory "nba cares" community involvement programs? are the endorsements the measuring stick? do you have to sell out in order to become a man? does the worth of your signature on a cheap piece of merchandise (potentially produced by child labor in some far-off country) equate to how much worth you have as a man? if any or all of this is true, then we've got some seriously effed priorities and expectations as a culture, and we need to drop the facade and own up to that fact, instead of making our own excuses for the decay of every single youth culture we've ever documented. oh, its the rich basketball players. its the rap stars. its the rock music. its the tween pop sensations. its the movies. its the video games. its everything but the parenting. its everything but simply being human, and being prone to making mistakes...

for a lot of people, smoking pot isn't even a "mistake" worth admitting. i smoked pot in high school and for a little while in college. i stopped because i had emotional issues that i needed to confront rather than run away from, and marijuana, while not chemically addictive, is a rather addictive escape. but i never think of it as a "mistake," because i only have myself to answer to. i won't apologize for being human, and, in my opinion, lebron shouldn't have to apologize for it, either, unless he's apologizing to himself for not meeting his own expectations. he's got his own autonomy to secure, and society needs to own up to its hypocrisy before i'll get behind some vague notion of lebron james needing to own up to his manhood. we point the finger at lebron because we have inflated and unreasonable expectations for athletes, who may be physical freaks of nature, but are no better equipped to tell the youth of america how they should act than you or i are. nobody knows. we just cling to these notions because it helps us sleep better at night...

case in silly-and-less-heavy-handed point, reality tv should be proof enough that pointing a camera at somebody doesn't make them a role model...



we should be our own role models...

 

[VF21]

Um, okay... ?!?

It's been too many years since I left school to want to get into a philosophical debate, Padrino.

I'm talking about Lebron James, not the world. I don't care if he knows how to be a man or not. I do care that he doesn't know how to take responsibility for his actions. My granddaughters have already learned that lesson - and they're only 5 and 3 1/2.

As I said above, bottom line?

He made bad choices. He should own up to them and move on.

He hasn't ... he's written a book to tell his story and he's still finding ways to excuse prior bad behavior. Since he chose to write the book, he can choose to take the flak for its contents.

 

[Bricklayer]

Actually the choosing of the book is why this is all so silly -- he isn't making excuses. He's telling a story. One he doesn't have to tell. This isn't about mea culpas or anything else -- who knows whether he even thinks smoking is wrong, although he did recognize its destructiveness and how it was limiting him as an athlete. And of course the biggest thing is that he is probably absolutely right -- the huge wash of media attention would have turned almost any of us on our heads at that age, juvenile insecurity and egos being what they are. This stuff even took place when he was still in high school -- before you can rationally slap the "should be a role model" responsibility on anybody. May have been stupid, but he wasn't letting down anybody but himself. It seems odd that many of us on here were sitting around at the time saying how out of control the media attention was to a high school kid back when it was happening, and now a few years later that kid coming out and saying it was out of control is excuse making.

If he was caught smoking in his car yesterday, and he pointed fingers and said "its all because of you guys/my homies/moy mom/whatever, that would be excuse making. When he authors a book about his high school years and says this is what happened, and looking back on it this is why it happened -- that's called an autobiography.

 

[VF21]

Actually the choosing of the book is why this is all so silly -- he isn't making excuses. He's telling a story. One he doesn't have to tell. This isn't about mea culpas or anything else -- who knows whether he even thinks smoking is wrong, although he did recognize its destructiveness and how it was limiting him as an athlete. And of course the biggest thing is that he is probably absolutely right -- the huge wash of media attention would have turned almost any of us on our heads at that age, juvenile insecurity and egos being what they are. This stuff even took place when he was still in high school -- before you can rationally slap the "should be a role model" responsibility on anybody. May have been stupid, but he wasn't letting down anybody but himself. It seems odd that many of us on here were sitting around at the time saying how out of control the media attention was to a high school kid back when it was happening, and now a few years later that kid coming out and saying it was out of control is excuse making.

If he was caught smoking in his car yesterday, and he pointed fingers and said "its all because of you guys/my homies/moy mom/whatever, that would be excuse making. When he authors a book about his high school years and says this is what happened, and looking back on it this is why it happened -- that's called an autobiography.

Yes, the media was out of control. Yes, there was incredible pressure. BUT he's not that kid any longer. If he's writinig the book, then he needs to own his mistake, since he's said that's what it was he needs to accept that the ultimate responsibility for choosing the path he did was his. That's all I'm saying. Own it and move on. Nothing to see...no big.

Maybe I'm missing the whole thing, but just because he's writing a book and telling a story doesn't mean he's absolved from accepting the responsibility for making the choices he made.

 

[Jerryaki]

wait, nike hasn't stepped in to confiscate and burn all the books yet?

::rimshot::

 

[kingsnation]

why should athletes be considered role models in the first place?

The fact that millions of children have their names on their backs might be one reason. Also, many kids probably know more about Michael Jordan than they know U.S. Presidents. ... so no matter who's fault that may be, it still equates to children putting athletes up on a pedestal. Earned or not.

 

[Padrino]

Um, okay... ?!?

It's been too many years since I left school to want to get into a philosophical debate, Padrino.

I'm talking about Lebron James, not the world. I don't care if he knows how to be a man or not. I do care that he doesn't know how to take responsibility for his actions. My granddaughters have already learned that lesson - and they're only 5 and 3 1/2.

As I said above, bottom line?



He hasn't ... he's written a book to tell his story and he's still finding ways to excuse prior bad behavior. Since he chose to write the book, he can choose to take the flak for its contents.

your granddaughters WILL change...

this is a point of fact...

its a fact of life...

its a part of growing up...

i actually was unaware of this book lebron is writing. i'll have to do the research. seems weird. i wouldn't expect that lebron has to "set the record straight," or anything like that, so i wonder why he'd bother writing a book at the age of 24? he's got a lot more living to do. that actually is something i disaprove of. don't try to tell your story until you've got a story to tell. lebron's a fantastic basketball player. he's had some impressive individual achievements, but he hasn't really won anything yet, except overwhelming popularity. at least wait until you get a ring, son!!

 

[VF21]

your granddaughters WILL change...

this is a point of fact...

its a fact of life...

its a part of growing up...

No, they won't change...at least as far as knowing what it means to be responsible for your own actions. That's a lesson I was taught at an early age, passed on to my daughter and she has passed it on to her daughters. I'm certain they will make mistakes in life, but learning responsibility is something you do not forget. You can choose to ignore it but you still know it's there...

The idea he's writing a book is part of my frustration/pique about the whole thing.

Peace.

 

[Bricklayer]

He wrote a book about his becoming famous in his last two years of high school. Seems like a potentially interesting and timely enough topic given the whole age limit debate, and not one where you would typically find a chapter titled "I apologize for being a teenager". You guys are trying too hard.