With the news that LeBron James signed a contract extension with the Los Angeles Lakers, it’s clear the superstar isn’t going to give up his spot as the best player in the world anytime soon. Despite having a lackluster first year in Los Angeles, LeBron proved once again that he’s unstoppable when he’s healthy. However, there might be one player who is gunning for his status as the best in the world.
Dallas Mavericks phenom Luka Doncic is coming off arguably the best year for a 21-year-old ever. He’s still just a pup but it looks like he’s got a great shot at being the face of the NBA once LeBron steps down. He’s got an incredibly bright future ahead of him.
In fact, LeBron recently revealed that he was expecting Doncic to be a star and made a pretty big revelation.
“Luka is one of my favorite players in the NBA today. For the simple fact of, the way I play the game is exactly how I love the way he plays the game,” LeBron said on the Road Trippin’podcast. “Team-first, gets his guys involved, if you challenge me to score, I’m gonna score. And at the same time, I’m gonna score, but I’m gonna keep my guys involved. … I play for the team, and I’m gonna play with a sense of joy.
“When Luka was going through his contract negotiations with Nike, and you saw him at one point he would wear Jordans, and started wearing the other brands on his feet during practices. … I wanted to begin ‘Team LeBron’ and have Luka as my first signing with Nike.”
It would’ve been very interesting if LeBron was able to sign Doncic. He clearly knew the young baller was going to be a star.
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LeBron Expands
LeBron had a chance to go into further detail about his pitch to Nike.
“This is what I wanted, and I don’t believe my guys at Nike were ready for that,” he said. “Obviously, they were not, because he ended up going to Jordan, and I don’t even know if Luka knows this, but he would know it now. I wanted Luka to be the first signing of Team LeBron when he was going through his situation. And it didn’t happen, he’s still under the same umbrella of Nike’s with Jordan, but I wanted him to be (with Team LeBron) …
“That’s how much I believe in him, and I feel like it’s going to haunt me a little bit. But I wanted him to be my guy, I wanted him to be my first guy because I just love what he stands for. I love everything about him both on the court and off the court. He’s just a great guy.”
That’s some very high praise from one of the greatest to ever do it. The crazy thing is that Doncic is only scratching the surface of how great he can be.
Mavericks & Lakers Face off on Christmas
LeBron is going to get his chance to face off against Doncic very soon as it appears the plan is for the Lakers to play the Mavericks on Christmas Day this year, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
ESPN Sources: Tentative Christmas Day Schedule
It’s a testament to how much the NBA believes in Doncic’s star power to have his team play against the reigning champions on Christmas. It should be a big game for both teams.
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LeBron James on Young Superstar: I Wanted Him ‘as My First Signing’