NBA
LeBron James’ curious pre-game superstitious ritual
LeBron became the first player in history to surpass the 40,000-point barrier in the NBA, reaching the milestone in Saturday’s home defeat to the Denver Nuggets.
At 39 years of age, LeBron James is still going strong. The Lakers center reached a new milestone this weekend after breaching the 40,000-point barrier in the NBA, becoming the first player in history to reach such an historic milestone. The feat has taken James 21 seasons in the best basketball league in the world.
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LeBron’s locker room ritual
He surpassed the magical figure with a left-handed layup with 10:41 left on the clock in the second quarter. King James’ legacy is supported by his astonishing numbers - the fruits of a career carved out with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Miami Heat and Los Angeles Lakers. This week, details of the Lakers’ star’s curious pre-game rituals and superstitions were revealed by ex-Miami Heat guard, Mario Chalmers.
“He used to lay his jersey out, on the floor. That man would lay his whole outfit out all over the floor before the game and makes sure everybody walks around it. One time the media walked over the jersey... he snapped. And he made the kitman get his a whole new jersey, shorts, tights, headband, armband and socks... and lay it right back out,” his former teammate Chalmers revealed on the Playmaker podcast.
Chalmers, who shared a locker room with the King during his stay with the Miami Heat, continued detailing the anecdotes during the four seasons on the team together. “Their idea is that everyone walks around their clothes on the floor, but no one walks over them. Like Bron, OCD, superstitious, you know you better walk all the way around it like it’s a chalk outline,” Chalmers added.
As for his own superstitions, Chalmers confessed that he has to “take a shower before every game and I had to listen to Lil Wayne. Some Lil Wayne or Future. I was all Future heavy back then too”.
A lot of players have their own personal methodology, rituals and superstitions to being them luck and help them get in the zone. Apart from LeBron James and Mario Chalmers, Thomas Bryant explained his pre-match routine on the podcast. “For me, I always got there early, so if my shoe-in time was at 5:30, I’m there probably at 4:15. And I’m doing all the preparation, stretching and everything. For me, it really depends on the day. I listen to my people, back home, up north - I listen to a lot of Benny the Butcher, Westside Gunn... the mainstream ones would be, for sure, Future, Wayne and Lil Dirk too - a combination of all of them”.