LeBron James is a free agent again, and for the first time in years there is real doubt over where he ends up.
The 41-year-old has told the Los Angeles Lakers he is leaving after eight seasons, with free agency opening on Tuesday night. The Golden State Warriors are the names mentioned most often.
One team almost certainly out of the running is the reigning champions, the New York Knicks, whose books are already stretched thin. Yet 16 years ago, that same franchise wanted James so badly it commissioned a recruitment video starring James Gandolfini and Edie Falco — better known as Tony and Carmela Soprano.
The Sopranos reunion the New York Knicks used to chase LeBron James
Back in 2010, James was the most coveted free agent the sport had seen. He was the best player in the league, widely tipped to win multiple titles, and nearly every contender wanted him. The Knicks wanted him more than most.
So they got creative. As revealed on the Pablo Torre Finds Out podcast, New York put together a recruitment video built around a scene in a smart Manhattan apartment, with two very familiar faces. The rest is best left to them.
Carmela Soprano, played by Falco, opens by telling her husband: “Tony, I’m so glad we moved to New York. Life is so much better now.”
Tony Soprano, played by Gandolfini, replies: “Yeah, life is good here, Carm. Even if you’re in the witness protection program.”
Talk soon turns to the man they are trying to house.
C: “Now, we just got to find a place for your friend LeBron to live. What’s he like?”
T: “Well, he’s a modern guy, but he respects tradition.”
C: “You could get something classy on the East Side.”
T: “Is it big enough? He’s going to be entertaining a lot of people in New York.”
C: “It’s very expensive.”
T: “Oh, that’s not going to be a problem. You got to find something magnificent. Something there’s nothing in the world like it, one-of-a-kind, like he is.”
C: “Well, here’s a place. Says it gets really loud there. Take a look.”
On screen is a photo of Madison Square Garden.
T: “Oh, yeah. Yeah, that’s it. That’s going to be perfect for him.”
A fun idea, but it didn’t work. James took his talents to South Beach, joining the Miami Heat alongside Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh — a switch sealed in part by a now-infamous in-person meeting with the Knicks that went terribly.
Sixteen years on, the reigning champions are not expected to be in the mix. The Warriors and the Heat lead the way. His decision is still to come.
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