New York Giants wide receiver Parris Campbell shared a story about when he met LeBron James at a Cleveland Cavaliers game.
James, who is now with the Los Angeles Lakers, attended the same high school as Campbell in Ohio – St. Vincent-St. Mary High School.
“I want to say it was at one of his games.” Campbell told the New York Post’s Steve Serby about meeting James. “I had got tickets to the Cavs game, and somehow, I don’t necessarily remember how it happened, but I ended up going back by the locker rooms, and I remember him calling my name out. It was kind of surreal for me. Obviously I knew him, I’ve seen him before in Akron like all the time, but kind of putting two and two together that he knew who I was was cool for me. I just remember being elated like the whoooole day, whole night, and I think later that day he ended up following me on Instagram or something like that.”
It’s pretty amazing to see how polarizing of a figure James is, especially since Campbell is a professional athlete himself.
The wideout is entering his fifth season in the NFL after being drafted in the second round (No. 59 overall) in the 2019 NFL Draft by the Indianapolis Colts. Campbell spent the first four seasons of his NFL career with Indianapolis before joining the Giants this offseason.
James is arguably the greatest player in NBA history, and he made a major impact on his hometown team – the Cavs – in multiple stints with the franchise.
After being drafted No. 1 overall in the 2003 NBA Draft, James eventually led the Cavs to an NBA Finals appearance in the 2006-07 season. While the team was overmatched against the San Antonio Spurs, it was still an impressive feat early in James’ career.
The four-time champion ended up leaving the Cavs to join the Miami Heat prior to the 2010-11 season. He won two titles in Miami, but that didn’t stop him from coming back home to Cleveland.
In four more seasons with the Cavs, James led the franchise to four straight NBA Finals, erasing a 3-1 series deficit in the 2016 NBA Finals to capture a title with Cleveland.
It makes sense that Campbell – who comes from the same area as James – would be a little awestruck to learn that the NBA legend knew who he was.
While it may be hard for Campbell to become a bigger star in football than James is in basketball, he clearly has the support of the Lakers star. James recently posted a message to Campbell on his Instagram story.
Campbell had a career-high 623 receiving yards in the 2022 season, and he will look to build on that in his first season in New York.
