"Going to cost yourself millions of dollars": LeBron James' high school coach recalls scolding NBA icon for performance in front of Sonny Vaccaro
Before LeBron James became the legendary NBA player that he is today, he was one of the most promising high school players at the time. His St. Vincent-St. Mary High School coach Keith Dambrot knew it and wanted Sonny Vaccaro, Adidas executive and founder of the ABCD Camp, to see him.
They traveled to San Francisco and Dambrot recalled the LA Lakers star struggling on the court, appearing distracted with his shorts. Dambrot felt James was jeopardizing his future, and also a potential deal. He chastised the young LeBron James and shared the story on NBA insider Brian Windhorst's 'The Hoop Collective':
"So, we're playing at the University of San Francisco, and if anyone knows LeBron, he kind of beats to his own drum, whatever he feels like, he does. (44:19)
"And so we're playing and I don't know whether his shorts were too big or he just didn't feel like playing, but he was messing with the shorts the whole time and he wasn't playing very good.
"So I took him out on the hallway and said, 'LeBron, do you know who that guy is?' And he says, 'Yeah.' I said, 'Well, you know you're going to cost yourself millions of dollars if you [don't] quit messing around,' and that probably wasn't the term I used, as most of you know."
Following his pep talk with his former high school coach, James went on to put on an electric performance. Dambrot revealed that Adidas executive Sonny Vaccaro "drove the price up, and he (LeBron) ended up making a lot of money on that shoe deal."
It eventually led to Nike matching the asking price and being in a completely sole position to secure LeBron James. Now, James stands as one of the shoe brand's most prominent signature athletes and one of three players with a lifetime deal. The other two are Chicago Bulls legend Michael Jordan and Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant.
LeBron James talked about the building blocks set by former high school coach for his development
In an interview with Yahoo! Sports' Dan Wetzel, the four-time NBA Champion revealed how crucial Keith Dambrot's coaching was in his development as a basketball player.
"Coach Dambrot set the foundation for me; it was all fundamentals," James said. "Dru and I were trying to get better and better and here was this coach willing to work with us."
Since he entered the league, James has always been one of the most complete players from a skill set standpoint, along with his impressive IQ for the game. He continued to hone his craft in each season he played in the league by making the proper strides in his growth as a player.
It was pivotal to have a coach like Dambrot in high school, especially considering that LeBron James was working his way to make it into the professional league. He carried on the teachings and the guidance passed onto him and has carried each one with him to this day.