The annual pro-am summer basketball tournament, the Drew League, was initially unveiled back in 1973 and over time has formed a wide community of amateur and professional basketball players. Some popular NBA athletes who have taken the opportunity to dip their toe into the Drew League include Kobe Bryant, DeMar DeRozan, Kevin Durant, JR Smith, Paul George, James Harden, Nick Young, Paul Pierce, John Wall, LeBron James, and so many more. Having to skip out on the 2020 tournament, due to various COVID-19 restrictions, this season marks the 40th anniversary of the league which seemingly compelled a handful of NBA stars to return to the competition such as DeMar DeRozan and former NBA Finals MVP Lebron James.
Being played during the same time period as the NBA Summer League, the Drew League is the perfect playing ground for off-season professional athletes to continuously perform at the highest level throughout the entire year. After a decade of absence from this specific tournament, LeBron returned with an emphatic statement by putting a double-double that consisted of 42 points and 16 rebounds: 37-year-old James assisted the MMV Cheaters to a 104-102 victory over Black Pearl Elite.
“Thank you @DrewLeague!!,” LeBron wrote in a caption that was posted to his Twitter account. “Loved the energy from start to finish.” Former Cerritos Gahr High and Long Beach State athlete, along with being the previous Drew League MVP, Casper Ware Jr. expressed how electric a stadium can get when a super athlete such as LeBron James steps on the court — “The day was crazy. A guy everybody wanted to come to watch, it was already packed early in the morning… I [was] trying to find a way to get people in, my close friends, and all this and a lot of them could not even get in. He just brought that type of atmosphere where there is no room on the baseline to stand or anywhere; it is just the energy he brings everywhere he goes.”