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"If he was sponsored by Samsung, everybody got free Samsung phones" – Ex-Cav reveals how generous LeBron is


Former Cleveland Cavaliers big man Brendan Haywood had a rare opportunity to experience what kind of teammate LeBron James is. Haywood only played one season with the Cavs, but it was enough time for him to develop a deep admiration for James as a teammate.

According to Haywood, to say that James is generous felt like an understatement. For him, LBJ was far from what some people think he is. Brendan revealed that for LeBron, everybody in the team is family.

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Haywood also noted that not one member of the team ever felt left out under James' leadership. Bron knew precisel y how to connect to people regardless of their position in the organization and that's what made him remarkable.

"LeBron is a great teammate," Haywood told The Ringer in 2018. "He gave the best gifts. Of all the superstars I played with, he gave the best gifts. Anything that he was sponsored by, he would give to his teammates. So, if he was sponsored by Samsung, everybody got free Samsung phones. Beats by Dre. I had so many extra Beats by Dre headphones I was giving them away to people as gifts. That's how many he made sure we had."

"Just taking everyone out," he continued. "Making it a family atmosphere. That was his best thing — how he communicated and interacted with teammates."

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Haywood says LeBron and MJ had different personalities

In his first two years in the NBA, Haywood also had the chance to play alongside his fellow UNC alum and the one and only Michael Jordan. Even though Brendan acknowledged that both Michael and LeBron were the leaders of their respective teams, he could still recognize the major difference between the two icons.

Based on Haywood's firsthand experiences, James was innately a people person. For some reason, he emphasized that LBJ could make his teammates like him one way or another.

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On the other hand, Haywood described Jordan as an ultimate competitor. Although he may have been almost 40 years old when he was with the Washington Wizards, MJ still lived and breathed competition.

"LeBron is totally different than Mike from a personality standpoint," Haywood assessed. "LeBron is a great people person. He loves to interact with his teammates. He's a hard worker as well. But they're different people as far as their approach. Mike's approach is, every thing is competition. If there's shooting on the side, he wants to hit the most shots. If we're playing a scrimmage, he wants to win that scrimmage. LeBron goes out there and just plays excellent, great basketball."

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Related: "Bob, the deal's at the two-yard line" - Raptors GM recalls the Spurs randomly approaching them about trading Kawhi

LeBron's teammates know the real him

From an average fan's perspective, James exemplified what a typical prima donna NBA superstar is. However, that wasn't how he left his mark on Haywood and his other former teammates.

For them, the real James is totally diffe rent from how the media has been portraying him for at least this past decade or so. As for his generosity, LeBron has long been helping his teammates and even people outside the NBA.

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Through his LeBron James Family Foundation, he has already sent more than 1,000 kids to the University of Akron in his hometown of Akron, Ohio. Truth be told, it was just one of LBJ's many charitable works.

In conclusion, people could say whatever they want about James. However, that wouldn't matter to his former and current teammates as they already knew who LeBron truly is on and off the court.

Related: "A secondary GM within the team" – Brendan Haywood describes what type of impact LeBron James had on the Cavaliers

This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Aug 27, 2025, where it first appeared in the Old School section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

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