Fear the Links: LeBron James is at the center of it all

Typically, LeBron James is in the news for what he does on the basketball court. LeBron, of course, has evolved into a cultural icon off the court as well, but at the end of the day, he is primarily known for what he does on the hardwood.

Over the past week, however, LeBron has been in the headlines for reasons other than basketball. Here's a sampling of those headlines, plus some other basketball stuff for good measure.

Via the Sporting News:Yesterday, Delonte West called out LeBron in an Instagram post and then followed it up by making a joke about that one specific rumor about West and Gloria James. West, though, supposedly didn't do it and his phone was hacked. Just going to sip some tea, don't mind me.

Via SoundCloud: Kanye West named dropped LeBron in his Nike diss song 'FACTS'. The other NBA players mentioned? James Harden and Nick Young.

Via cleveland.com: After the Cavs beat the Nuggets, LeBron spoke on the decision not to prosecute the cops who killed Tamir Rice. He took heat on social media from activists who said he wasn't doing enough after LeBron said he didn't know everything about the Rice situation. Afterwards, Chris Haynes of cleveland.com wrote an eloquent, powerful column on LeBron and his own experience with not speaking out. This is a must read.

Via Fear the Sword: LeBron just turned 31 and our own Justin Rowan looked at his past, present and future.

Via King James Gospel: Luke Sicari wrote about why the decision to start Tristan Thompson was the right one.