LeBron James: Racist graffiti incident shows 'I still have a lot of work to do'

Cleveland Cavaliers All-Star forward LeBron James says that the experience of having racist slogans painted on the gate of his $20 million home in Los Angeles last year taught him how much work there is to do to overcome the nation's racial divide.

"I'm a black man with a bunch of money and a crib in Brentwood, and having the word 'n-----' spray painted over my gate, that lets you know I still have a lot of work to do," James said.

James was speaking with ESPN's Cari Champion in a segmenttaped for UNINTERRUPTED in January. James and Golden State Warriors All-Star Kevin Durant got together with Champion to talk about this weekend's All-Star Game in L.A. and the political climate in the country from their perspectives.

"No matter how far you come," James said about the graffiti on his house, "there are always people who want to let you know that you are still beneath them. You either cave in to that notion or you say, you know what, I'm going to paint over this gate and make it taller."

James and Durant were both highly critical of President Donald Trump. James said the president "is someone who doesn't understand the people. And really doesn't give a f--- about the people."

The Cavs star has spoken out against the president before. He was a supporter of Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, and after Trump was critical of NFL players protesting in 2017 during the national anthem, James called him a "bum."

"While we cannot change what comes out of that man's mouth," James said, "we can continue to alert the people that watch us, that listen to us, this is not the way."

Durant has said he would not have gone to the White House had the Warriors received an invitation after winning last year's NBA title.

"What's going on in our country," Durant said, "it's all about leadership. I learned that playing basketball. I learned a lot of life skills from playing basketball. You need to empower people, you need to encourage people. That's what builds a great team. And I feel like our team, as a country, is not run by a great coach."