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Something of value is finally on the line for LeBron James. Not the Eastern Conference championship, but his conscience.
A lack of commitment to a dose of activism from one of his much lesser-known teammates has presented James with an enormous test of will.
After learning of the atrocities in Sudan, where militia forces have turned to raping women and children since most of the rebel men have been exterminated, Cleveland bench-warmer Ira Newble was taken aback.
"The situation touched me," Newble told the Cleveland Plain Dealer. "I'm here in the U.S. and I have means to live well and I'm not suffering and then I hear about women and children getting raped and killed and the Sudanese government and the Janjaweed are perpetuating the violence. I had to do something."
So, he did.
With assistance from Eric Reeves, a professor at Smith College and Darfur expert, and Jill Savitt, director of the Olympic Dream for Darfur campaign, Newble penned an open letter to China, the host of the 2008 Summer Olympics and the Sudan's top investor and trading partner.
According to analysts, China is also Sudan's largest supplier of weapons, which include fighter aircraft and helicopters. China has even used its veto power on the U.N. Security Council to stall efforts to increase the peacekeeping force in Sudan. The Sudanese government has resisted the increase as well. It's alleged money and weapons from the Chinese are helping the Sudan military and a militia group called the Janjaweed in their efforts to pulverize Darfur's "African" farmers. The United Nations estimates at least 200,000 have died from violence and disease since the conflict started in 2003. Another 2.5 million are estimated to be displaced.
China though has denied aiding the militia and recently acquiesced to increasing international pressure by appointing a new special envoy to Darfur.
Newble's letter is meant to continue to pressure China into doing something more to quell the disaster in Darfur. In part, it states that as professional athletes and possible participants in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, they cannot look on with "indifference" and that "China cannot be a legitimate host to the premier international event in the sporting world ... while it remains complicit in the terrible suffering and destruction that continues to this day."
In an effort to drum up support, Newble made Darfur information packets and left them in each teammate's locker. Twelve of his teammates signed the letter. Three did not.
Two of the missing signatures belong to Cleveland bit players David Wesley, who was away on personal matters, and Damon Jones, who has a shoe contract with Chinese sportswear giant Li-Ning. The third missing signature is the face and future of the NBA, James.
Before Game 4 of the Cavs' series against the Nets, James was asked why not.
"Just basically not having enough information," James said. "That was the main concern, not having enough information about what's going on. At the same time, I do respect my teammates' opinions and things like that. I have to have a little bit of extensive knowledge to make a decision on something."
Newble is hoping to have others in the league sign his letter. He hopes an NBA star will sign on, increasing exposure. He is also attempting to spread the letter across other professional sports leagues.
But James' signature appears unlikely to be on the letter.
He has a $90 million contract with Nike, a company entrenched in the Chinese market. This statement is on Nike's Web site, under the company overview: "... China became both a source country and a vital market for Nike. The Asia Pacific region is Nike's third largest in terms of revenue, and number one in terms of manufacturing."
Let's not forget that in early May James was named the official NBA ambassador by commissioner David Stern. Stern has also hinted at trying to start a league in China, a country giddy about the NBA. In response to Newble's efforts, Stern released this statement through a spokeswoman: "We respect our players' rights to express their views on important public issues." That's enough to make the incessant "NBA Cares" spots running during the playoffs laughable.
The fact that James is initially hesitant should not come as a surprise or even a disappointment. It's what he does now that matters.
The Utopian hope is the 23-year-old James uses his platform as one of the ubiquitous faces of pro athletics to do something other than get rich. Newble is not pressuring his star teammate, saying who has signed is more important than who hasn't. But this is the time for James to sit down with his Nike people. Sit down with David Stern. Time to realize selling shoes is the least he can do with his celebrity and riches. He needs to sit down, then stand up and help.
If he doesn't "have information," ask Newble for more. Ask one of the 108 members of the House of Representatives who just signed a similar letter and sent it to China. Ask Steven Spielberg why he's done the same.
Ask NBA veteran Dikembe Mutombo, a player with minuscule reach in comparison with James, why he paid $15 million to build a $29-million-dollar hospital in his homeland of Zaire. Mutombo, 40, is pondering retirement, but has something else on his mind first.
"I just want to go think about how many people's lives I can change in Africa. After that, maybe I'll think about basketball again," Mutombo told the Houston Chronicle.
Ask Utah guard Derek Fisher why he used a postgame interview in the second round to talk about his 10-month-old daughter being afflicted with retinoblastoma, a rare cancerous tumor in the eye. He pleaded with parents to have their child's eyes checked.
The opportunity for a first step is there, James just has to decide where his priorities lie. Is he more worried about long-term marketing and image, like Michael Jordan was? Will he eventually attach his name to a bogus foundation sponsored by Nike? Or will he be a catalyst for betterment?
"You have to decide what it is you want to use your celebrity for," former U.S. Senator and basketball hall of famer Bill Bradley told Bloomberg News. "It's conceivable that some people will choose to never do it, in which case it's unfortunate. There are bigger lives that can be led."
There are questions of fairness that need to be addressed before chastising a young, influential figure for not saving the world. Is it fair to James to expect this of him because he is rich? Is he expected to say something out of obligation generated by the pigment of his skin? Is it simply because he is a fellow human?
Or is it just that he could, so he should?
The answers to all those question could be yes, bolstering hope and expectation that James follows Muhammad Ali's road to influence. After all, this has to be viewed as a simpler situation in comparison. James would be signing a document that denounces rape and genocide. Not exactly an ideological challenge.
What he stands to lose is cash. What he stands to gain cannot be quantified. He has an opportunity with his limitless reach that can touch those with limited hope.
For him, the world is wet concrete. The question that remains is what his indelible mark will be.
