Lakers' LeBron James Gifted 16 $38,388 Scholarships by Nike for I Promise Students
LeBron James became the NBA's all-time scoring leader on Tuesday night, surpassing the legendary Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and among the celebrations and pageantry after his incredible accomplishment was a gift from Nike founder Phil Knight.
According to Joe Vardon of The Athletic, "James received scholarship gifts from Knight—worth $38,388 a year, for four years—to college for graduates of his iPromise school program in Akron. Four children will get them each year, and they will last for four years, to any college of their choice."
Among James' many accomplishments during his NBA career are his contributions to the Akron community. Per the iPromise website, the "Akron Public School [is] dedicated to those students who are already falling behind and in danger of falling through the cracks."
"People can talk about everything else besides that, but they can never take away what I'm able to do for my hometown and people all around the world. That's what means to me more than anything," James told reporters back in 2017 about opening the iPromise school. "The basketball thing, I love it and I enjoy it, but to give back and be able to open up a school, that's something that will last way beyond my years."
Just like his new scoring record.
