LeBron Raymone James Sr. (/ləˈbrɒn/; born December 30, 1984) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "King James", he is widely considered one of the greatest players in NBA history and is frequently compared to Michael Jordan in debates over the greatest basketball player ever.[lower-alpha 1] The only player to have won NBA championships with three franchises (the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Miami Heat, and the Lakers) as NBA Finals MVP,[1] James has competed in ten NBA Finals, eight of them consecutively with the Heat and the Cavaliers from 2011 to 2018. His accomplishments include four NBA championships, four NBA MVP awards, four NBA Finals MVP awards, and two Olympic gold medals.