With over 20 years of experience, LeBron James has been in countless situations and he's met virtually everyone with any relevance to the NBA. On Friday, James went viral after sharing an iconic throwback picture featuring Michael Jordan , Antoine Walker, and a younger version of himself.
"The fro! lol. Damn school wouldn't let us wear braids," wrote James on his IG story. "All love though [St. Vincent-St. Mary High School]."
The photo was obviously taken before LeBron's superstar ascension, but it was a sign of things to come for the NBA legend. Impressively, even back in High School, LeBron James had enough clout to pose for a picture with top-level NBA veterans and he didn't look out of place at all. Over 20 years later, he somehow still remembers the details of that meeting and what it was like to share the room with the best player in the world at the time.
What Is The Story Behind The Picture?
The photo comes from Anointe Walker himself after he shared it on social media a few years back. The date was 2001 and LeBron James was just 16 years old at the time. As the story goes, LeBron was there to participate in a pick-up game featuring NBA pros and prospects like Jordan, Walker, Jerry Stackhouse, Paul Pierce, Ron Artest, Eddy Curry, and Jamal Crawford among others.
The best part of the story is Michael Jordan, who refused to take it easy in the offseason scrimmage. According to LeBron James himself, Jordan hit the game-winner in the matchup before walking off with an iconic one-liner: "that's why they pay me $33M to do this!" James described it as a surreal experience for him and said that playing with Joran (his favorite player of all time) was like a dream come true for his young career.
One Of Many Throwbacks For The King
The picture most recently shared by James is actually just one of many "lost" photos of his early career. Back when LeBron was first starting out, smartphones were not a thing yet and it was much rarer to capture special moments on the court with pictures. Nonetheless, LeBron has a number of these iconic "throwbacks" and even several with Michael Jordan. Recently unveiled in the "LeBron James Home Court Museum" is this photo between LeBron and Mike from a 2003 scrimmage. There's also the picture that went viral this July, featuring James with Magic Johnson and Bow Wow.
Thanks to his unprecedented longevity, LeBron has countless of these pictures and it tells the story of how long his run has endured. At 16 years old, he was taking photos with Michael Jordan in his prime. Now, over 20 years later, he's still going strong as one of the best players in the world at 38 years old. It's been a truly miraculous run for the King and we may never see another tenure like this in the NBA. From day one, LeBron James has lived up to the expectations and Michael Jordan probably knew what was coming well before anyone else.
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