LeBron James Admits To Wanting To Visit China “At Some Point”

China is a huge market for the NBA, and that is nothing new. Among the league’s international audiences, few countries can go toe to toe with the second-most populous nation in the world. Because of that, the NBA makes sure to establish its presence on the ground every single year. The face of the league, LeBron James, understands this as well.

James has been to China 15 times so far for his Nike promo tour. It’s also not been that long since his last visit, with the King traveling to China as recently as 2025 to promote his “Forever King” tour, to promote his LeBron 23 shoes. Was it also a farewell visit? One last visit to China?

Not according to James, who, during media availability at All-Star Weekend, admitted that he would like to make another trip to the East.

“To all my fans and people over there it’s always been great,” James stated. “Always welcomed me and my friends and family in open arms. I’ve always appreciated it, they’re be another opportunity for me to go over there at some point.”

James has remained coy on his relationship with China over the years. He found himself in hot water in 2019 when he went against Daryl Morey’s statement on China.

“I don’t want to get in a word or sentence feud with Daryl Morey, but I believe he wasn’t educated on the situation at hand, and he spoke.”

Since then James has returned to China on a semi-regular basis as he did before the incident as well. So, it’s safe to say he’s welcome in the country to quite a fair extent.

Even if James retires from the NBA after the 2025-26 season, as some believe he will, Nike, which has supported him throughout his career, would still look to capitalize on his popularity in China. Both James and the iconic American brand remain hugely popular there, despite the political tensions between the two countries.

At the same time, it looks as though James has another country in his mind he would love to visit. And that’s Israel.

In the same presser in L.A., James was asked about his thoughts on the Middle-Eastern country, and his reply showed that he really wanted to go there. “If I have fans over there — I’ve never been there — I hope you follow my career, I hope I inspire people over there.”

“Not only to be great in sports, but to be better in general in life, hopefully someday I can make it over there,” the Lakers icon added. “I’ve heard great things and I appreciate the question.” 

For now, though, James cannot travel anywhere that far from home. Crunch time in the season is here with the All-Star break nearly over, and his focus is solely on possibly ending his career with a fifth ring.