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#pounditThursday, March 28, 2024

LeBron James would like to play in NBA Africa Game

LeBron James

The NBA’s efforts to boost their international presence could be getting a huge helping hand in the near future.

At the third annual NBA Africa Game this weekend, league commissioner Adam Silver said that LeBron James has expressed interest in participating.

“Both [NBA Africa managing director] Amadou [Gallo Fall] and I have spoken directly to LeBron James, and he has stated that he would very much like to come to Africa and be part of the game,” said Silver, per Kwesé ESPN’s Lindsay du Plessis. “I will say on his behalf that he has an extraordinarily complicated schedule, even in the offseason, and he is someone who, for the last eight years, has played in the NBA Finals.

“So his season has gone from September to late June, so he has a very short break,” Silver continued. “During those summers he also often plays for the national team, Olympic Games, things like that. I know it’s high on his list of priorities. I don’t want to put undue pressure on him, but I’m sure that at some point he will make the trip.”

The exhibition game, which is played on the African continent as part of the league’s Basketball Without Borders program, began in 2015 and has been played every year since, except for 2016. It features NBA players of African origin or descent competing on “Team Africa” against NBA players from the rest of the planet on “Team World.” This year’s game featured such stars as Joel Embiid, Serge Ibaka, Harrison Barnes, and Khris Middleton.

We also saw some really great viral moments as a result of the contest, and adding probably the single biggest star in the NBA to the mix would surely lead to a drastic increase in its overall marketability and success.

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