LeBron James recently broke his nose and like all NBA players, he is wearing a protective face mask to protect it while it is healing. In the image above, he is pictured in the black mask which he wore in last night's game. Today the league formally asked him to switch to clear mask, and although he was not violating a rule, the Miami Heat star complied.
The less we see of a person, the less we trust them. This body language principle is particularly true when the face is covered. Depending on the other nonverbals with which it is clustered, it can also evoke fear. His appearance has evoked comparisons to Hannibal Lecter. And despite the fast pace of NBA play, the inability of the opposing players to see even subtle facial expressions gives him an unfair advantage (ergo comparisons to Kato and Batman) - although this is offset somewhat by his own teammates' diminished ability to see the same facial cues.
See also:
Nonverbal Communication Analysis # 2284: LeBron James in The White House - A Fundamental Body Language Mistake
Nonverbal Communication Analysis # 1898: Heat, Hugs & Head Surrogates
Nonverbal Communication Analysis # 2380: Johnny Depp, The Lone Ranger & David Letterman Tonto's Body Language
Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 2569: Hillary Clinton, Visibility, Trust and a Harbinger of 2016
Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 2591: Chris Christie on Romney's Campaign Vetting Leak, Body Language Tells
Communication Analysis No. 2606: Brett Farve Displays Body Language of Fear about any Son Playing Football
Nonverbal Communication Analysis # 2338: Why Does Keit Pentus-Rosimannus feel Fear? Body Language of Estonia's Minister of Environment
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