Before social media websites became money-minting marketing tools, athletes used them as nothing more than avenues to post unfiltered opinions just as fans do. However, in this new digital age, their uncensored thoughts from years ago are wiped clean or buried too deep to resurface. But occasionally, curious fans dig deep and find gems, like Jayson Tatum‘s adorable post demanding LeBron James to follow him back on X, formerly Twitter.
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Fans are liking and re-sharing a 2012 post from the Celtics superstar following his maiden championship win. The teenager posted a grainy picture posing with LeBron James at the time while sporting a Kobe Bryant All-Star game jersey. He then captioned it by asking James to follow back, before he mentioned the different people he was related to.
“King James, follow back. It’s Larry Hughes nephew from St. Louis and Abe and RJ’s lil cousin and Justin’s son. Follow back.”
@KingJames Follow back it’s Larry Hughes nephew from st. Louis and Abe and Rj Lil cousin and Justin Son Follow Back pic.twitter.com/AnOnb7E8
— Jayson Tatum (@jaytatum0) April 13, 2012
Tatum seemingly met James after watching his uncle, retired NBA guard, Larry Hughes, in action with the Cleveland Cavaliers. He hilariously tried to leverage his uncle’s relationship with the superstar to get him to follow him back. Unfortunately, the youngster’s plea went unheard.
In James’ defense, he already had millions of followers on social media who tagged him on several posts daily. It probably became second nature for him to avoid checking his cluttered notification tab, which is likely why he missed Tatum’s request.
However, James still doesn’t follow the Celtics star on X. That said, he does follow him on Instagram. So, at least in some sense, Tatum’s adorable wish was granted.
This is not as far as their relationship goes either, as Jayson has clearly earned the respect of the Lakers superstar as well. James even spoke out on the matter recently.
LeBron James is astounded by Jayson Tatum’s playoff resume
In 2012, Jayson Tatum was just a fan, pleading with LeBron James to follow him on social media. Fast forward six years, he was on the court battling the then-Cleveland Cavaliers star as a rookie in the Eastern Conference Finals, dunking and flexing on the four-time MVP.
Tatum put the world on notice with that dunk and continued to grow in stature before establishing himself as one of the best players in the league. En route, he has consistently enjoyed the kind of playoff success that James didn’t taste until he hit his prime.
During an episode of the Mind The Game podcast, the Lakers superstar put into perspective how exceptional the Celtics superstar’s career has been. He talked about what the Boston Celtics star had done already by the age of 25, and how the other great players only got to the same stage during their respective primes.
“He’s 25 years old and I believe he’s been to the conference finals four times, been to the NBA Finals once, he’s 25 years, I didn’t win my first one until I was 28, I think [Jokic] won his first one at 27, I think [Michael Jordan] was 28 as well”
James then went on to say that while everyone wants to see the Celtics superstar go all the way and win it all, it needs to be recognized that he is on an elite path already.
Obviously, everyone wants to see him get over the hump [of winning a championship], but four conference finals and a Finals appearance before the age of 26 is – that’s elite.”
Tatum has finally gotten over the hump and now has a championship ring at 26. Needless to say, he has come a long way since having to ask LeBron James for a follow back on social media.
