Amazed by LeBron James' longevity, ex-Olympian shares throwback snap of Team USA superstar smoking cigar
Former NBA player Lamar Odom was a teammate of LeBron James back in the 2004 Olympic Games in Greece and he is amazed that 'The King' is still at it, competing in this year's edition of the Summer Games.
James, now 39, is making his fourth Olympic Games appearance in Paris, which officially kicked off with an extravagant and colorful opening ceremony on Friday in the French capital.
To mark another impressive feat by LeBron James, two-time NBA champion Odom paid homage to him by posting a throwback photo of them in the 2004 Games in a light moment smoking cigars. They were joined by teammates Stephon Marbury, Carmelo Anthony, Dwyane Wade and Amar'e Stoudemire.
Odom captioned it with:
"Some babies!! GREECE 2004 Olympics! Dang and Bron is still hoopin lol"
The 2004 Olympic Games, however, did not end with a gold medal for Team USA as hoped, with the squad settling for bronze, behind gold medal winner Argentina and runner-up Italy.
While his first Olympic experience was not golden, LeBron James came out in the next two editions of the Games on top, winning gold medals with 'The Redeem Team' in 2008 in Beijing, China, and in London, England, in 2012.
He is now looking to add a third Olympic gold in Paris, with their bid starting on July 28 in a Group C match against Serbia.
LeBron James once admitted being naive during his first Olympic appearance in 2004
While he was proud to represent the United States in his first Olympic Games in Greece in 2004, LeBron James admitted that he was not fully aware of what to expect when he got there.
He shared this in an interview with GQ in 2012, highlighting that he did enjoy his Olympic experience but his 19-year-old self was not yet ready to handle everything that took place on the court.
He said:
"I had no idea what I was getting into. I just wanted to have the experience. Everything on the court I didn't expect. But I think I'd do it again."
In the 2004 Olympic Games, the U.S. settled for the bronze medal after losing to eventual gold medal winner Argentina in the semifinals. Team USA defeated Lithuania to claim third place.
LeBron James averaged 5.4 points, 1.6 assists and a rebound in 11.5 minutes per games in his first Olympics.
Apart from James, also part of the 2004 U.S squad were Allen Iverson, Stephon Marbury, Dwyane Wade, Carlos Boozer, Carmelo Anthony, Emeka Okafor, Shawn Marion, Amar'e Stoudemire, Tim Duncan, Lamar Odom and Richard Jefferson. The coach was Larry Brown of the Detroit Pistons.