Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James has opened up on his relationship with his idol Michael Jordan. James has mentioned on many occasions that MJ is his childhood idol and Akron Hammer is mostly compared with the legendary Chicago Bulls player.
James, who is currently playing his 22nd season in the NBA, feels his bond with Jordan could blossom once he decides to call it a day in his glorious career.
“We don’t talk,” James said on Pat McAfee Show on Tuesday. “Because I’m still playing. I’m still playing, I’m still focused on my craft right now.”
James said, “I would hope so,” when asked if he believed a rapport could blossom between him and Jordan after the Los Angeles Lakers star retires — similarly to the way James became closer to Kobe Bryant after Bryant finished his playing career.
“The funny thing is, me and Kobe — the late, great Kob, obviously — me and Kobe never had a real relationship either,” James said. “We were on the [USA] Olympic team, we had a great relationship there. The Olympic team in ’08, the Olympic team in ’12, but it was always competitive between us. We were always like, I was on the East Coast, he was on the West Coast, and it was like, even though … in ’09 and we didn’t beat Orlando and didn’t get an opportunity to play him in the Finals [there was a competitive friction].”
James recalled that his friendship with the late Kobe Bryant flowered after the latter retired in 2016.
“That’s when our relationship became really, really good,” James said. “He welcomed me. He called me, like, ‘Bro, anything you need in L.A., I got you. You’re a Laker now. You’re family.’ And we would have multiple conversations. Obviously, you guys saw him coming to a lot of games. … And when I passed him for the scoring record in Philly, he had a tweet out there like, ‘Keep on going.’ Like, ‘Keep transcending the game. Keep going.’ And that s— meant so much to me.”
“I think it’s because I’m still playing,” James continued. “And MJ, we all know MJ. Even if you don’t know him personally, he is one of the most ruthless competitors there is, and until I’m done and he doesn’t have to look at me running up and down wearing the No. 23 and every time my name is mentioned, it’s mentioned with his, [a relationship will have to wait].”
The Lakers will next take on the Chicago Bulls on Thursday.
