NBA LeBron James with Team USA
NBA (Youtube)

An absolute NBA superstar, LeBron James has also had a lot of success with Team USA.

But the Chosen One almost missed out on that forever… and in this case, it would have been entirely the fault of the most prolific scorer of all time.

Not only has LeBron James come out of international retirement after a twelve-year absence, but it is the King who will be the flag bearer for the United States at the Paris Olympic Games.

Already crowned in 2008 and 2012, the Lakers superstar is hoping to make it three and wrap up another gold medal around his neck.

Over time, LBJ became a Team USA legend. However, it wasn’t all easy… He made his debut in 2004 at the Athens Olympics, which turned into a fiasco.

The same in 2006 at the World Cup… Besides that, the player who was then playing his first seasons at the professional level did not stand out for his impeccable behavior, as the X NBA Strife account recently explained in a long text:

When LeBron turned everyone against him before the 2008 Olympics

LeBron James was nearly cut from the 2008 Olympic team due to his immaturity in previous Olympic events.

From Team USA coach Mike Krzyzewski to general manager Jerry Colangelo to NBA veterans, the issue of LeBron James’ immaturity and disrespect had become a hot topic heading into the Olympics.

The course of history could have changed dramatically, as there was a real risk that James would not be brought to Beijing for fear that his monumental talent would not be worth managing on a daily basis.

When it came to marshaling these huge egos and getting the NBA’s greatest players to fit into a program, no one had a harder time fitting into the framework than James.

No one could stand James, then 19, at the 2004 Athens Olympics or the 2006 World Cup.

The management was concerned that James would become the instigator of everything they wanted to get rid of for the 2008 Olympics.

Despite his talent, Krzyzewski and Colangelo were convinced that with the arrival of Kobe Bryant on the national team in 2007, the team could win a gold medal in 2008, with or without LeBron James.

After the NBA witnessed James and manager Maverick Carter’s behavior during the 2007 All-Star Weekend, the commissioner’s office informed USA Basketball that the league would not force James into the Olympics.

Before Team USA assembled for the 2007 Tournament of the Americas in Las Vegas, an unequivocal message was delivered to James via Nike: If you don’t change, we’re seriously going to leave you at home.

LeBron James was far from beneficial to Team USA in his early days, especially because of his behavior.

Fortunately for him, the King eventually got his head in a spin and twenty years after his first steps with the American team, he is now the flag bearer for the United States. A very beautiful story.