"LeBron James, the David Beckham of US basketball." A recent answer contained the above quotation. Exactly what qualities does LeBron James share with David Beckham to merit this description?

looney_tunes

I suspect the epithet merely refers to the fact that the author considers LeBron James to be a superstar in his sport, worthy of being a household name like David Beckham. Beckham as the symbol of excellence athletic performance is referenced in the movie "Bend It Like Beckham", and is often used as a cultural reference. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LeBron_James http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Beckham Dec 13 08, 2:21 AM

zbeckabee

I'm not sure that one can compare the careers of a man aged 33 and a man aged 23. However, for those who are familiar with LeBron James, it is more than clear that he can boast numerous accomplishments and is very capable of great things in the field of basketball. http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/mar/24/pressandpublishing.fashion http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_beckham http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LeBron_James Dec 13 08, 8:59 PM

bigponder

George Best, arguably the greatest British soccer player of all time, once said of David Beckham: "He cannot kick with his left foot, he cannot head a ball, he cannot tackle, and he does not score many goals. Apart from that, he's all right." (What George thought of LeBron's abilities is not known.) http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/618154.stm [Added reference link - McG] Dec 14 08, 12:10 AM