LeBron James is passionate about helping younger athletes reach their full potential.
James has been open about texting with Johnny Manziel, the 2012 Heisman trophy winner from Texas A&M, and giving him advice on how to handle the harsh media spotlight. Manziel is a divisive personality - some fans love love him for his abilities on the field, but he's hated by others for perceived poor sportsmanship and immaturity in the past.
After Manziel decided to enter the NFL draft, he took a bigger step forward in his relationship with James. The former A&M QB signed with LeBron's agency, LRMR - operated by James' childhood friend Maverick Carter.
Before James played in a recent game against the New York Knicks, he spoke about his friendship with Manziel:
"I think at the end of the day, he's an unbelievable competitor, and we love what he brings to the table as far as being a football player and as far as being a young man that's trying to strive for greatness, so we're just happy we're able to be a friend of his and be able to help him."
After the deal went official, James took to Instagram with a collage of pictures of the two athletes together and wrote, "Welcome to the family Johnny Football! Let's get it #LRMR #StriveForGreatness."
Two great athletes with aspirations for bigger things. It'll be interesting to see what they do working together.