How LeBron’s Business Ventures Will Play a Part in Enticing the King Home

From a restaurant with a museum inside, to a critically acclaimed school, LeBron is an icon of the Northeast Ohio community. Here is why some of those ventures will lure him back home.

LeBron James acknowledges the crowd's reaction as he takes the stage for the I PROMISE Family Reunion event to welcome him home on Friday at InfoCision Stadium in Akron. The event was hosted by the LeBron James Family Foundation. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Many Cavs fans believed one of the big reasons LeBron left the Cavaliers for the Lakers was to pursue business opportunities in Los Angeles. Regardless of how true or false that may be, it shows that LeBron is well known as a businessman.

While Los Angeles may have given him his own rendition of Space Jam, James brought some of his more impactful businesses to his home in Northeast Ohio. 

What LeBron is up to in Northeast Ohio

None of which have been more successful than LeBron’s personal passion project; LeBron’s I Promise School located in Akron provides a haven for kids elementary to middle-school age in the heart of his hometown of Akron.

The school works in close partnership with the city of Akron’s public school system to make the school’s services available to students in the Akron area that need it most. 

LeBron also invested in an event/entertainment complex. The event center, called House 330, is also located in Akron and is host to a variety of businesses that help boost the local community.

From a bank to retail spaces, House 33 is designed to be an anchor point of the Akron community to provide spaces and jobs to a community that was in desperate need of safe public spaces for all. House 33 also is home to LeBron’s famous chicken restaurant called Buckets.

Like most of LeBron’s local business ventures, Buckets emphasizes “family fun” and a commitment to something bigger. Connected to the restaurant, and the rest of the event center, is a small museum called LeBron James’ Home Court.

Home Court offers an in-depth look into LeBron’s formative years as a typical youth of Akron Ohio. Guests will initially notice a replica key to LeBron’s iconic Springhill Apartment 602, the key will unlock the gateway into a replica of James’ childhood apartment.

Here fans can see exactly how LeBron lived with his mother Gloria. From a living room with a retro TV and snacks like LeBron had when he was a child, to his childhood bedroom decorated in full 1990s swag.

Amongst many other displays and artwork, one can find an exhibit dedicated to James’ philanthropy. Here fans and tourists alike can learn that LeBron doesn’t see all the records, rings, or impact on the game as his greatest legacy. The exhibit evokes that Lebron is most proud of the effect he has had on the community he was raised in.

With a potential decision for a return still in the balance, the Northeast Ohio community would certainly benefit from a third stint with LeBron just as much as the Cleveland Cavaliers.