Cavaliers star LeBron James earned 2016 Sportsperson of the Year honors from Sports Illustrated after leading Cleveland to its first professional sports championship in 52 years last season.
James, 31, helped the Cavaliers erase a 3-1 deficit in a best-of-seven NBA Finals series with the Golden State Warriors, preserving the comeback victory with his iconic block of Warriors forward Andre Iguodala in Game 7.
"In putting the Cavaliers on his back in the NBA Finals he also fulfilled a promise to his home city and to an entire region," Sports Illustrated's editorial team wrote. "He was following through on that heartfelt, but risky, vow he made three summers ago when he returned home after four successful years in Miami."
In the 2015-16 season, James averaged 25.3 points, 7.4 rebounds, 6.8 assists and 1.4 steals in 76 games while leading the Cavaliers to the top seed in the Eastern Conference with a 57-25 record.
James, a four-time NBA MVP who has won three championships -- two with the Heat, also earned Sportsperson of the Year in 2012 after winning his first title, his third MVP and his second gold medal with U.S.A. Basketball.
This season, James is averaging 23.5 points, 8.1 rebounds, 9.3 assists and 1.1 steals through 15 games. Cleveland is 13-3 and sits atop the East.
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