NBA’s LeBron James backs Hillary Clinton for president in editorial

Chris Pizzello / Invision / AP

NBA basketball player LeBron James, of the Cleveland Cavaliers, accepts the award for best male athlete at the ESPY Awards at the Microsoft Theater on Wednesday, July 13, 2016, in Los Angeles.

By Tom Withers, Associated Press

Monday, Oct. 3, 2016 | 9:23 a.m.

CLEVELAND — LeBron James has given Hillary Clinton an assist.

The NBA superstar, who helped end Cleveland's championship drought earlier this summer by winning a title with the Cavaliers, is backing Clinton for president. James believes Clinton can do more to help at-risk kids like he once was, saying she's the only candidate who "truly understands the struggles of an Akron child born into poverty."

James endorsed Clinton in an editorial written for the Akron-Beacon Journal, his hometown newspaper. The editorial was in the newspaper's print edition Monday and also published online by Business Insider .

A father of three, James explained he returned to Ohio in 2014 with two missions: to win a championship and help area children by giving them "the resources and opportunities they need to stay in school and reach their dreams through education." James feels Clinton's background as "a champion" in working to improve public schools and more makes her worthy of his vote.

The 31-year-old James campaigned for President Obama in 2008.