More Than A Game
A riveting sports biography and documentary with plenty of lessons
If you’re interested in the transformative power of youth sports, and its ability to cultivate leadership, camaraderie, and community, I recommend reading the book Lebron by Jeff Benedict (New York Times Best Seller), and watching the documentary More Than A Game, directed by Kristopher Belman.
With meticulous research from hundreds of interviews and thousands of pages of primary source material, Jeff Benedict writes a riveting and insightful narrative of Lebron’s early life. The documentary, which I recommend watching while reading the book, makes the writing come alive with a large cache of home videos of these kids and their youth coaches from years before they became famous.
I’ve followed LeBron since he started playing professionally but was surprised by many of the insights. How did a group of five neighborhood kids forge deep bonds with each other, and end up playing on a team that defeated basketball powerhouses from all over the country? Why did these kids make the unexpected decision to play at St. Vincent St. Mary, and how did they deal with the racial implications? How did their high school coaches navigate the pressure and national media attention, while working to impart their players with life lessons? How did young Lebron intentionally cultivate his inner circle, and not fall prey to the all-consuming chaos of becoming a nationally recognized basketball prodigy?
The book and documentary are an inspiring look at how sports can shape young lives, forge unbreakable bonds, and teach invaluable life lessons. There are additional insights that span Lebron’s professional career and private life. But the lessons from the early years stood out to me.
