WWE News and Rumors: Could LeBron James Be Wrestling In WWE in 2014? Picking Six Top WWE Stars He Could Face
For decades, the WWE has been big in having stars from every corner of entertainment cross over into their world of bright lights, body slams and thousands of screaming fans.
Names like William Shatner. Regis Philbin. Mickey Rourke. Shaquille O'Neal. Ben Roethlisberger. Seth Green. Pamela Anderson. Kid Rock. Mr. T. Muhammed Ali. Floyd Mayweather Jr. Bob Ueker. Cyndi Lauper. John Legend. Snoop Dogg. Donald Trump. Kim Kardashian. And many others.
Now, one more name could be added to that list: LeBron James.
I kid you not, you read that right. LeBron James. As in the four-time NBA MVP, two-time NBA champion superstar for the Miami Heat, and arguably the best basketball player on the planet right now.
Why such a bold claim? Well, it all goes back to a rather interesting tweet that "King James" sent out on Sunday:
"Who do i need to talk to to get one of those World Championship Belt? WWE belt. The real ones," James tweeted, which drew more than 4,500 retweets from Twitter.
It didn't take long for some of the biggest stars in WWE to respond to the King's request.
"@KingJames Got your back. I'll take care of it tomorrow and hit ya back off line. Done," tweeted Dwayne "the Rock" Johnson, arguably the biggest movie star in Hollywood right now and maybe the most popular star WWE has ever produced.
John Cena, the 14-time world champion and most visible star the company has to offer, sent out a Tout offering his help in finding James more gold.
Chicago's own CM Punk, one of the WWE's biggest stars and the longest reigning WWE Champion of the past 25 years, tweeted in jest that James should ask Luc Longley, the Australian bruiser who played center for Michael Jordan's Chicago Bulls during their three-peat NBA championship years between 1996 and 1998.
Normally, that kind of talk can be dismissed as just celebrities having fun. However, this is WWE we're talking about. This is the same company that brought us Lawrence Taylor vs. Bam Bam Bigelow as the main event for WrestleMania 11. That put undefeated boxing champion Floyd Mayweather Jr. in the ring with the Big Show at WrestleMania 24. Which had Chris Jericho nose-to-nose with Mickey Rourke and Shaq in 2009. Which had CM Punk and Chris Brown exchange some heated words that drew a tease for a potential in-ring confrontation between the two (though that ultimately never came to fruition).
With WrestleMania 30 around the corner and the return of Brock Lesnar and impending comeback of six-time world champion and Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy star Batista on Jan. 20, it's evident that WWE is trying to jam as much star power as possible into their lineup for WrestleMania season this April. And with the latest exchange on Twitter involving James, who obviously has heard of John Cena as evidenced by James' adopting Cena's "You Can't See Me" taunt during games throughout his career...
...it begs the question: What if LeBron James, the king of the basketball world, decides to trade in his b-ball shorts for wrestling gear and step into a WWE ring?
Now, mind you, this scenario isn't talking about LeBron seeking a permanent role with WWE, of course. What this involves is a strict one-time, one-off match appearance. Obviously, the time and place for a WWE match involving one of the most recognizable names in sports would be at WrestleMania, but with only three months left before the Greatest Spectacle in Sports Entertainment kicks off at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans on April 6. However, that's not to say such a thing couldn't happen. Remember: *Card Subject to Change, and all that.
From a media and publicity standpoint, especially in the world of social media, it makes perfect sense for the WWE to seek out James to see if they can work out a match featuring the hoops king. James is one of the most popular athletes in the world today, with more than 10.9 million followers on Twitter, and the most searched NBA player on Google in 2013, according to Google. And with the company always in search of mainstream acceptance, getting LeBron to agree to take part in a match, to borrow one of Triple H's phrases, would truly be "what's best for business."
It wouldn't be as if the NBA has never crossed into the realm of wrestling before. Five-time NBA champion and controversy lightning rod Dennis Rodman famously stepped into the ring in WCW in 1997, donning the black and white colors of the nWo as he teamed with Hollywood Hulk Hogan against Lex Luger and the Big Show (then known as The Giant), while NBA Hall of Famer Karl Malone teamed with Diamond Dallas Page against Rodman and Hogan in 1998. Of course, while both Rodman and Malone were two of the all-time greats, neither player was in the realm of popularity that James enjoys as the most celebrated basketball player since Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan. And take a look at how James is put together. At 6'8, 250 pounds, he's tall, imposing and sports the chiseled physique that rivals a statue of a Greek god. Tell me this guy doesn't look like he could put the hurt on someone if he learned a few holds and slams.
For LeBron, who has shown he is a natural entertainer as per his guest host skits on Saturday Night Live, the takeaway from such a match would be a huge opportunity to entertain legions of fans around the world on another level that branches out and flirts with showbiz. (Well, that and the massive payday that WWE would surely dole out to King James for one match.) And it would be a way to be an ambassador to the NBA and attract any wrestling fans who don't normally watch basketball to introduce them to a little bit of what LeBron James, the entertainer and showman, can do. For WWE, what they get out of it is simple: a tremendous crossover opportunity for their company, millions of new viewers tuning in for the curiosity of watching the spectacle of LeBron James wrestling, which translates to a lot of money and new revenue, not to mention the added exposure that would warrant from major sports networks like ESPN, ABC and Fox Sports.
But just who would be the right fit for James as an opponent in the ring? Which WWE Superstars would be the perfect fit to put tagging with or place across the ring from the reigning king of the NBA? LatinosPost.com takes a look at some of the ideal candidates:
The Best in the World vs. The Best in the NBA.
Either as a tag team partner or as an opponent, the Chicago-born CM Punk could have great chemistry in the ring with James. As proven in the past with his bouts against John Cena, Brock Lesnar, Triple H, the Rock, the Undertaker, Daniel Bryan, The Shield and more, the five-time world champion Punk can have a great match with just about anyone. If there's one thing Punk knows how to do, it's make his opponents or his tag partners look good. As a tag team partner, Lebron could easily step into Punk's current feud with The Shield (imagine James stepping toe-to-toe with the 6'3", 275-pound Roman Reigns; paints a pretty picture, doesn't it?). As an opponent, Punk's tweet about Luc Longley towards James could be a simple, but effective setup for a match against James, the angle being perhaps James feeling disrespected by Punk and taking on the heel persona that Rodman adapted when "The Worm" put on his wrestling boots years ago, leading to a clash between the most outspoken personalities in their respective sports. Either way, an angle with Punk and James could be quite interesting.
Randy Orton
While "The Viper" currently lords on top of WWE as the reigning WWE World Heavyweight Champion, he has never been above delivering a swift and thunderous RKO to celebrities. Mark Cuban. Seth Green. Freddie Prinze, Jr. Meatloaf. Wayne Brady. They've all been snake-bit by Orton. And adding the best basketball player on the planet to that list of victims might be too tempting for Orton to pass up. Orton is as capable a wrestler in the ring as anyone who has ever laced up a pair of wrestling boots, so he knows how to make and sell a match like this. And the callous personality of "the Viper," who has been one of wrestling's top heels for the last decade, would surely get the crowd further behind James, who towers over the 6'4" Orton by four inches and looks like he could match Orton in the strength department.
Big Show
The obvious route is to go for the spectacle, and there is no bigger physical spectacle in WWE than the 7'2", 500-pound Big Show, who has had plenty of experience squaring off against celebrities in the ring. From Floyd Mayweather Jr. to sumo superstar Akebono, Rodman, and even Shaquille O'Neal, Paul Wight has seen the spotlight shine brightly on him, and there are few images that could capture the imagination quite like a staredown between "The World's Largest Athlete" and the world's best basketball player in the squared circle.
Batista, Brock Lesnar
After nearly four years in exile, "The Animal" returns to WWE on Jan. 20. And already, the six-time world champion-turned-MMA fighter and movie star of this summer's Marvel movie "Guardians of the Galaxy" has indicated that he'd love a chance to work with Brock Lesnar. But is there a way to work James in there?
What about a program where Batista teams up with James to take on Lesnar and manager Paul Heyman? Lesnar and Batista could handle the wrestling load, while James could look good trying to get his hands on Heyman, who could be a great foil for James by being the despicable heel manager that he has played to perfection for decades.
John Cena
This one seems like a no-brainer. LeBron is the biggest name in basketball. Cena is the biggest name in sports entertainment/wrestling. While the idea of LeBron going toe-to-toe with Cena in a singles match would be a sure-fire money winner, there might be a better way to package these two that would be less wear-and-tear-and possible injury-for the Miami Heat superstar. Package Cena and LeBron together as a tag team. The top babyface and a sports icon as beloved as LeBron James teaming together for the first time? Sounds like money.
There are any number of ways that this could work. Maybe Cena and LeBron could team up against Randy Orton and another top heel like Alberto Del Rio, who is coming off a long world title run. Maybe it involves a three-on-two handicap match against The Shield or the Real Americans, or a six-man tag if you throw an un-and-comer like rising star and WWE Intercontinental Champion Big E Langston or an established star like CM Punk or Daniel Bryan in the mix. The possibilities are endless, and the hype for a Cena-James angle could be huge. However, there's one possible angle involving a superstar that easily could top this one...
Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson
Come on, tell me that this wouldn't draw the kind of mainstream media attention that Vince McMahon craves like Gollum craved the One Ring throughout the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy. Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson has done it all in both WWE and in Hollywood. Arguably the most recognizable figure of the Attitude Era alongside Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock is the biggest box-office star in Hollywood today, his name grosses millions for films like the "Fast and Furious" franchise that he helped revive. His back-to-back appearances at WrestleManias 28 and 29 helped WWE break records for PPV orders. And he is universally loved across the spectrum of entertainment around the world. And the Miami-born eight time former WWE Champion and University of Miami football standout is a close friend of James since "The King" took his talents to South Beach.
A match teaming up The Rock with LeBron would be a guaranteed blockbuster and attract all kinds of hype from press around the world. It really wouldn't matter who you pair them against. The Real Americans, the Shield, the Wyatt Family, maybe a combination of heels with potential like Brodus Clay and/or the Miz, or even a big heel name like Randy Orton or perhaps even Triple H thrown in there somewhere. Either way, putting the biggest basketball star on the planet in the ring with "The Most Electrifying Man In Sports Entertainment" sounds like what's best for business.
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