The Lakers megastar may have been humbled after being blocked at the rim for just the ninth time in the 1850 times he’s taken it to the rack during Los Angeles’ surprise loss to Brooklyn, but videos emerged almost immediately after proving once again he is the man we should all want to be.
A video James posted to his Instagram page on Thursday morning (AEDT) shows the four-time MVP, riding the sidelines as a sporting parent cheering his 10-year-old son Bryce on during a local league game in California.
James is mic’d up during the clip, so it’s safe to assume the King fully intended for the clip to make a splash.
It is in fact going viral — and all for the one moment he shows off his famous photographic memory while delivering an adorable, uplifting pep talk to his son.
The clip shows James trying to cheer his son up after Bryce missed some shots in his team’s come from behind win.
His fatherly advice is simply heartwarming.
“Come and sit down real quick,” James begins telling his son as they plonk down on some courtside plastic chairs.
“You made three of the biggest plays of the game. You want me to tell you what they were?
“You get too down on yourself for no reason. You made three of the biggest plays of the game.
“You got the offensive rebound, down four, got the tip-in, right? Then you had the outlet pass to Owen, when he got the and-one, and then you made the last swing (pass) to him for the game-winner. You know what I’m saying?
“So if you’re making shots or missing shots, don’t worry about it kid. You played a hell of a game. You ain’t got worry about making shots or missing shots. Alright. Good job. Proud of you, man.”
Just like that, the world is right again.
Bryce clearly got the message too — you can see a smile break out across his face by the third sentence of James’ pep talk.
As impressive as his parenting skills, James’ latest display of his photographic memory was the real reason the internet fell for the clip so hard.
James’ faultless memory bank became the stuff of legend during last season’s NBA Eastern Conference finals when he recalled an entire stretch with perfect detail after a game against the Boston Celtics.
Immediately after the game in May, James was asked to explain the time his team conceded a 7-0 run at the start of the fourth quarter.
His re-call was perfect.
“What happened? The first possession, we ran them down all the way to two on the shot clock, Marcus Morris missed the jump shot, followed it up, they got a dunk,” he said.
“We came back down, we ran a set for Jordan Crawford, I mean Jordan Clarkson, and he came off and missed it. They rebounded it.
“We came back on the defensive end and we got a stop.
“They took it out on the sideline. Jayson Tatum took the ball out, threw it to Marcus Smart in the short corner, he made a three.
“We come back down, miss another shot, and then Tatum came down, went 94 feet, did a Eurostep and made a right-hand layup. Time-out.”
Faultless.
James is on a hot streak right now when it comes to pure sporting class.
The 33-year-old was spotted after his team’s 115-110 upset at the hands of the Nets in Brooklyn waving security away from an over-eager fan who invaded the court after full time to steal some time with the King.
After brushing security aside, James even turned his frown upside down just moments after his humbling defeat to pose for a photo with the fan.
The King.
