Lakers News: James Worthy Receives Great Sports Legend Award

Corey Hansford
2 Min Read

James Worthy is a seven time NBA All-Star, three time NBA Champion, the 1988 NBA Finals MVP, and was named one of the 50 greatest players of all-time. Last night, Worthy was one of many athletes honored by the Buoniconti Fund as he received the Great Sports Legend Award.

Other recipients of the Great Sports Legend Award last night included former Olympic gymnast Shawn Johnson, golfer Nick Faldo, former New York Yankee Dave Winfield, and former Pittsburgh Steelers Quarterback Terry Bradshaw.

Worthy is often forgotten amongst the greatest to play the game because he took a backseat to Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, but Worthy was a downright superstar in his own right. Had he been placed on a lesser team Worthy could have easily averaged 25-30 points per game, but he wanted to win. Even in a lesser role, Big Game James always stepped up when it mattered most, as his 1988 NBA Finals performance showed.

The event benefitted the Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis and raises funds to support the ground-breaking spinal cord injury research done by researchers at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine’s Miami Project to Cure Paralysis. The event has raised almost $93 million since 1985.

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Corey Hansford is the Senior Editor for Lakers Nation, as well as a contributor for Dodger Blue, Rams News Wire, and Raiders News Wire. He is a passionate follower of the Los Angeles Lakers, Dallas Cowboys, Los Angeles Dodgers, Chelsea FC, and the UFC. He can usually be seen arguing the merits of Kobe Bryant or cursing the decisions of Jerry Jones. He is also a former producer and associate producer for Sirius XM Sports Radio on both the Fantasy Sports Channel and College Sports Nation. Proud graduate of Long Beach Poly High School and The Real HU, Howard University, with a degree in Broadcast Journalism. Follow him on all social media outlets at @TheeCoreyH.