When 17-Year-Old LeBron James Shocked His Friend by Casually Putting Antoine Walker on Hold

LeBron James was a superstar even before he got into the NBA, and the eyes of many greats in the league back then were on him. Many also wanted to get in touch with the generational talent from Akron, but well, they had to get in line. Sometimes, 17-year-old LeBron was too busy to give them time, even if they were All-Stars.

LeBron had the phone numbers of several NBA players back when he was in high-school. One of his old friends, Frankie Jr., even revealed that LeBron put Antoine Walker on hold. For someone his age to do that to a three-time NBA All-Star was surprising, to put it mildly. 

Frankie recalled that LeBron used to have a two-way pager as well as two cell phones. This was to ensure he could take calls and answer multiple text messages at once. Yet, he sidelined Walker so that he could talk to someone else. 

“Shoot, we were at Applebee’s one day, and Antoine Walker did call… And he put him on hold. How can you put Antoine Walker on hold?” Frankie questioned via ESPN. 

It’s a great question to ask. But LeBron was just that popular and in demand at the time. Almost every waking moment, he was being bombarded with phone calls from all sorts of people. What’s crazy, though, is that Walker wasn’t even the most famous name in LeBron’s phone book. Michael Jordan had once given the young James his number as well.

“He takes LeBron inside his private gym, and they talk for about 15 minutes. He doesn’t give him any advice but he gives him his cellphone number, and this is a pivotal moment for LeBron James,” author Jeff Benedict, who recalled the two meeting for the first time, once said. 

It’s an interesting story that not many fans may know about. But it was later revealed that LeBron never took advantage of having Jordan’s number. 

LeBron Ignored Calling Jordan

LeBron may be criticized for not having the “killer instinct” that made Jordan so fearsome in the NBA, but he always had the drive to become the greatest basketball player of all time. That’s why he never called the Chicago Bulls legend, even though he had his number.

Instead, LeBron kept it in his phonebook, seemingly as motivation.

According to Jackie MacMullan, Michael Jordan once gave LeBron James his phone number

LeBron never called

(Via The Ringer / h/t @Sportskeeda ) pic.twitter.com/x65Eulm2jU

— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) March 29, 2022

Today, the NBA GOAT debate has become one of the best sports discussions you can have. That’s because both LeBron and Jordan built incredible careers that rival each other. Not everyone can agree on who the outright GOAT is, but we can all agree that they shared the same competitive spirit, driven by the desire to be the best at what they do, even if it meant going to extreme lengths.