LeBron James wins Sports Emmy for documentary on Muhammad Ali

Cassandra Negley
·WNBA and women's college basketball reporter
Updated ·2 min read

LeBron James has another accolade to add to his list of them. The Los Angeles Lakers star is now a Sports Emmy winner after his production company’s feature was awarded for outstanding long sports documentary.

James’ SpringHill Entertainment wins for Muhammad Ali piece

LeBron James smiles while looking off the photo with a blurred background.
Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James has added a Sports Emmy to his arsenal of honors. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)

The winning piece is “What’s My Name | Muhammad Ali Part I” by SpringHill Entertainment, his production company with Maverick Carter. Sutter Road Picture Company and Fuqua Films also produced the piece.

James and Carter are executive producers.

The documentary aired on HBO and explores Ali’s “challenges, confrontations, comebacks and triumphs through recordings of his own voice.” It’s a two-part documentary that uses archival footage, some of which was previously unseen, and shows how Ali stood up for what he believed.

James continues in Kobe Bryant’s footsteps

Lakers legend Kobe Bryant had also gone into media production and won an Oscar in 2018 for “Dear Basketball.” The “Best Animated Short” was based on a letter Bryant wrote for The Players Tribune in 2015 announcing his retirement.

In his acceptance speech, Bryant referenced James and the criticism that basketball players shouldn’t comment on political issues and instead just “shut up and dribble.” Last month, Bryant posthumously won the Los Angeles Area Emmy Governors Award for his “philanthropy, community building and inspiration beyond the court.”

Bryant died in January in a helicopter crash at the age of 41. His 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, was one of the eight others who died in the crash.

James had two nominations for a Sports Emmy. His talk show on HBO titled “The Shop: UNINTERRUPTED” was nominated for “Outstanding Edited Sports Special or Series.” The HBO show “24/7” won in that category. He’s also involved in pursuits outside of basketball, including his recent initiative More Than A Vote and his work with the I PROMISE School he founded in Akron, Ohio.

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