The Assist: LeBron James, Savannah Brinson, Jay Z & Beyonce [photos]

LeBron James was honored as Sports Illustrated’s 2012 Sportsman of the Year Wednesday night in New York. King James had an amazing year which included winning the regular season MVP, his first NBA championship and NBA finals MVP and an Olympic Gold medal. The event took place at  at the eSpace club in Manhattan and was attended by family and friends, including his mother Gloria James, fianceé Savannah Brinson, Jay-Z and Beyonce and Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski.

Lebron accepted the award from Coach K and when asked if there was anything he’d tell his 17-year old self after being on SI’s cover in 2002, it was this:

“What I would say to that kid is there are going to be a lot of ups and downs, and there are going to be a lot of expectations” said James, after accepting the 2012 Sports IllustratedSportsman of the Year award at the magazine’s annual awards celebration. “There are going to be a lot of pitfalls, too. But it’s how you come back from those pitfalls and how you come back from those situations that will define you. You have obstacles you must go through. The easy thing for me to tell that 17-year-old kid would be to avoid it all. But that’s not the right thing to do. The experiences you go through in life make you a better person.”

Side note, Savannah looks AMAZING in Pucci!

photos via NBA and Getty Images