Over the last day or so the media has been buzzing with the story of Lebron James’s mother Gloria being arrested in Miami for assaulting a valet worker. I am almost at a loss for words when it comes to the way that some of these parents of professional athletes are behaving. Is it not enough that because your child is famous his every action is scrutinized, but now you have to go and bring negativity his way? I really do feel bad for Bron-Bron because a lot of people don’t like him and everything that he does is dissected and his mother just keeps adding fuel to the fire. We all remember the controversy that surrounded her and Bron’s then teammate Delonte West right? Basically word was that Gloria was in full cougar mode and sleeping with Delonte. Let’s not forget that she was also arrested for DUI in 2006.
Now Lebron’s mother is the only one who likes to shine that light of negativity on their child. Remember in 2010 when Amare Stoudemire’s mother was arrested in Arizona? Amare’s mother Carrie apparently has issues with the bottle and was arrested for not having an ignition interlock device in the car she was driving. She was pulled over initially because she was straddling two lanes. When Carrie was pulled over she went all crazy and refused a sobriety test, started kicking the police car, and told the cop to arrest her. So the cop arrested her and the entire time Amare was in the car. That was not Carrie’s first run in with the law either. She had been in jail a dozen or so times for different things from drug possession to prostitution.
So when do the parent’s of these athletes grow up? Do we hold that player’s accountable for the actions of their parents? The media is killing Lebron James right now as if he is responsible for the actions of the person who gave birth to him. What exactly is he supposed to say on his mother’s behalf? These parents need to understand that their children, especially Lebron and Amare, are NBA icons. With all the pressure on them not to slip up and do anything stupid why should they have to worry about whether or not their parents can stay out of the spotlight? Aren’t you as a parent supposed to be setting an example for your child? Where along the road did the child become the parental figure in the relationship? Once again I really feel bad for Lebron. He already has negativity following him around and it’s unfortunate that his mother keeps piling it on.
