LeBron James made history on Friday as the first male basketball player ever to be an Olympic flag bearer for the USA. As a result, plenty of fans came to an agreement on a brand new nickname for the Los Angeles Lakers star.
After the opening ceremony, James shared a photo of himself and tennis sensation Coco Gauff carrying the USA flag as the participating nations paraded on boats through the river Seine.
LeBron’s post quickly went viral, with plenty of fans calling him “Captain LeMerica” and “LeCaptain America” following his role as flag bearer. For those unfamiliar with the process, the flag bearers for the nation were voted on by the 592 participating USA athletes.
Obviously, both nicknames were inspired by the popular comic book character and superhero Captain America.
It’s definitely quite a fitting nickname for LeBron James in the Olympics, especially amid their bid to bring back international basketball honor to the USA. The Americans finished fourth in the 2023 FIBA World Cup, fueling doubts about their dominance on the world stage.
With that said, hopes are high that James can lead Team USA to the gold and prove to everyone that they are still the best in the world when it comes to basketball.