Long before they were squaring off in one of the most anticipated NBA Finals matchups in league history, Kevin Durant and LeBron James were partners — at least for one track in the recording studio.
According to ESPN’s Chris Haynes, James and Durant collaborated during the lockout in 2011 to record a hip-hop track. Durant, who was with the Oklahoma City Thunder at the time, had been working out with LeBron in Ohio. Since both players have a passion for music, they decided to write some lyrics.
Here are the fun details from Haynes:
Both players are music junkies, and in between workouts they decided to kill some time by writing their own lyrics and heading to the booth, sources told ESPN.
One person who has heard the song says he recalls Durant rapping the first verse, James hopping on for the second and then Durant finishing it off.
The song’s title and theme are unknown, as are its whereabouts. Durant, who produces beats in his spare time, is believed to have provided the instrumentals.
Unfortunately, the track may never be released to the public. LeBron and K.D. are said to have “burst out laughing” when they were asked about it, though they did essentially confirm it exists. One person who listened to the track told Haynes the lyrics were “surprisingly well-crafted and delivered.”
Eric Goodwin, an executive producer who produced the film “Thunderstruck” that featured Kevin Durant, said there were talks of the track being used for the film.
“I heard the track years ago during post-production for ‘Thunderstruck,’” Goodwin said. “It was very good. I suggested submitting it to Warner Brothers for the movie soundtrack, but KD wanted to keep it private.”
You just know a reporter is going to ask LeBron and/or Durant about their collaboration. And given the way James responded to one dumb question after Game 2, we’re guessing it is not going to go over well.
