LeBron James almost took his talents to Dallas or Seattle.
The Los Angeles Lakers superstar previously acknowledged his opportunities to try NFL teams during the 2011 league blockade, but James says he believes he was good enough to play professional football if he had accepted the invitations he received that year from Dallas. Cowboys and the Seattle Seahawks.
“I would have joined the team,” James told The Athletic. “I would have tried, but I would have joined the team.
“One thing about this, I don’t mind working for something, so if I had to try it for the Cowboys or the Seahawks, or if I had stayed home and gone back to Cleveland, I would have tried [out], but I would have made the team. I only know what I can do on the football field. Especially at that age. “
The story detailed James’ two years as a wide receiver at St. Vincent-St. Mary High School in Akron, Ohio. The four-time NBA MVP said he was recruited by Urban Meyer – who was the coach of Notre Dame from 1996-2000 and head coach of Bowling Green in 2001-02 – among other football programs.
After James, who was 26 at the time, and the Miami Heat lost to the Dallas Mavericks in the 2011 NBA finals, the start of the next season was delayed by a 161-day blockade that lasted until December.
James told The Athletic that Cowboys owner Jerry Jones invited him to audition for the Team of America, while Seahawks coach Pete Carroll also sent him an invitation along with a personalized shirt.
The 1.90m and £ 250 striker said he “seriously considered” Dallas’s offer, but was deterred by his friends and advisers. “I always think about it,” said James.
LeBron and Heat won the next two NBA titles in 2012 and 2013. He also won championship rings with Cleveland in 2016 and with the Lakers last year.