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‘This Is Insane’ – Frances Tiafoe Details What LeBron James Told Him When They Finally Met on the NBA Sidelines

Published 12/09/2022, 3:33 PM EST

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USA Today via Reuters

Frances Tiafoe, the young tennis sensation, recently shared his admiration for the famous basketball player, LeBron James. In September, Tiafoe defeated Rafael Nadal in the quarterfinals of the US Open. He thus became the first American to reach the semifinals in Flushing Meadows since 2006. On that day, Tiafoe received another huge surprise, a congratulatory tweet from none other than basketball legend LeBron James himself.

In the exclusive interview, Tiafoe declared his admiration and reaction to meeting the legend, LeBron James. On his way to his best performance to date, the American has undoubtedly been heavily influenced by his sporting hero.

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Frances Tiafoe shares his admiration for the Lakers legend ‘King’ James

Frances Tiafoe is taking advantage of his off season by catching up on his other sporting interest. Before an important NBA game, he had a memorable experience when he met basketball legend LeBron James.  The young tennis sensation had shared a warm embrace with James and shared about the same in an exclusive podcast interview. Tiafoe said, “I was telling my boys like finally, we got to do it like just meet each other. But yeah um when he first did it I was like man this is insane.” 

via Imago

Tiafoe greatly admires James, the legendary player of the Los Angeles Lakers. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest athletes in history. The American tennis player was thrilled to have met James, interacted with him, and seen him play live. Later, the tennis player shared his excitement on social media. Tiafoe didn’t even know James watched tennis. He also shared that he had got to meet James after reading his congratulatory tweet.

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LeBron James Sends a Message to Frances Tiafoe After His Epic US Open Celebration

Tiafoe further added, “He (LeBron James) said I’m proud of you yeah exactly it’s like yeah finally. He even said man keep going  on, so proud of you and then that was kind of good.”

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Tiafoe jokes about starting his basketball career

The American tennis star is now focusing on basketball, another sport that the US Open finalist has been following since his childhood. Tiafoe recently paid a visit to the NBA’s headquarters in New York City, where he spoke with the NBA Commissioner. He made light of the fact that he’s now thinking about entering the 2023 NBA draft.

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The 24-year-old played on the ATP Tour up until last week’s Davis Cup Finals in Malaga, where he competed for Team USA. He now appears to be taking a break after a demanding but fruitful season. Let us know what you think about the young American tennis star in the comments below.

Watch This Story: ‘I Think She’s Coming Back’ – Naomi Osaka’s ‘Surreal’ Statement on Idol Serena Williams’ Poignant Farewell to Tennis

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Written by:

Dr Aditya Raveendran Menon

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Aditya Menon is a Tennis Author at EssentiallySports. A dentist by profession, he developed an unbridled love for tennis from the moment his father introduced him to the sport. Watching Roger Federer dominate the ATP tour with his unique and effortless style played a pivotal role in pushing Aditya to write about tennis for national publications.
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Edited by:

Tony Thomas