"I’d guess the eighth-grader was a lot better than anything we were doing" - Denver Nuggets' president Josh Kroenke reveals how LeBron James pipped him to catch NBA scouts' attention
While LeBron James' high school basketball exploits are well documented, not many know that Denver Nuggets team president Josh Kroenke was a former collegiate basketball player before taking over the family business. In a rare interview, Kroenke revealed how his hoops dream ended because of the then St. Vincent—St. Mary High School prodigy.
The 41-year-old business granted an exclusive interview with Rob Draper of the Daily Mail to discuss the future of the family-owned Arsenal Football Club. One of the things Kroenke talked about was his background as a basketball player. He explained that he had aspirations to become a pro player and was even invited to play an international tournament.
However, the reality of him not making it to the NBA sunk in as Kroenke overheard NBA scouts saying that a 14-year-old LeBron James was better than all of them in the tournament. He also mentioned that the future four-time NBA champion was a different level athlete than him.
"Fortunately a few years later I realized that the eighth grader he referenced was this guy that no one’s ever heard of called Lebron James. It turned out it was a pretty good guess on that guy’s part. And I’d guess the eighth grader was a lot better than anything we were doing. I can live with that. There are moments in time for every athlete where you realize either how gifted you might be or that there is a different level of athleticism that someone else has been blessed with," Kroenke said.
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Before becoming involved in his family's many businesses, Josh Kroenke played five seasons in the Big 12 Conference with the Missouri Tigers. He averaged 2.6 points and 1.2 rebounds per game. Kroenke's basketball career never panned out, but now he's the team president of the Denver Nuggets. He's also involved with the NHL's Colorado Avalanche and the English Premier League's Arsenal FC.
Josh Kroenke is good friends with LeBron James
Before LeBron James signed with the LA Lakers in the summer of 2018, Josh Kroenke tried recruiting the four-time MVP to join the Denver Nuggets. One of the things Kroenke did was send James a throwback Nuggets jersey, but the King has already set his sights on Hollywood.
"The owner of the team is a very dear friend of mine, so he discussed it a couple times to me, and also he sent me those throwback jerseys I think they’re wearing tonight. The white ones. The white with the mountains. He said ‘you’d look good in one of these.’ But we’ve been on vacation, things of that nature. We have a great friendship, but I didn’t give it much thought," James said.
LeBron James says Nuggets president Josh Kroenke is one of his dear friends and sent him a Denver throwback jersey in an effort to recruit him this summer.
But ... “I didn’t give it much thought.” https://t.co/wwCZ9dF3KX
The vacation LeBron James was talking about happened in 2016 following the Cleveland Cavaliers' triumphant win over the Golden State Warriors for the city's first ever NBA championship. James went on vacation with Maverick Carter and Josh Kroenke in Italy in his 290-foot yacht.