LeBron James joined the growing list of NBA voices calling for the Memphis Grizzlies to relocate to Nashville, making his feelings clear on the "Bob Does Sports" YouTube channel.
LeBron James did not hold back when Memphis came up this week.
James made the comments during an appearance on the "Bob Does Sports" YouTube channel, posted Thursday, April 2. The show's crew had him out on a golf course, and somewhere between holes, the conversation turned to NBA travel.
At 41, James said road stops in cities like Milwaukee and Memphis aren't exactly something he looks forward to anymore.
Then he went further.
"I'm not like the first guy to even talk about it in the NBA," James said. "We all, like, 'You guys have to move. Just go over to Nashville. You got Vanderbilt over there, you got the NASCAR, you got a stadium. Don't they got a hockey team? Like, they've got everything."
Asked whether he could ever picture himself suiting up for the Grizzlies, James did not hesitate.
"Their only chance was in 2003 if they would've won the lottery to get me," he said. "And I might've pulled an Eli Manning and not shown up."
Manning was drafted by the San Diego Chargers in the 2004 NFL Draft, refused to report, and was traded to the New York Giants.
James is hardly alone in this particular opinion. Los Angeles Lakers head coach J.J. Redick apologized in 2023 after former NBA player Evan Turner suggested on Redick's podcast that the Grizzlies should leave Memphis behind. Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green made the same argument on his podcast in March.
ESPN's Stephen A. Smith has been banging this drum for years, drawing no shortage of fury from Memphians each time he brings it up. His recent push for Nashville to land an NBA expansion team prompted Ted Townsend, president and CEO of the Greater Memphis Chamber, to fire back at him directly on social media.
The relocation conversation is not going anywhere, either. The Grizzlies' lease at FedExForum expires in 2029, and while state and city officials have committed to a renovation effort expected to exceed $500 million, nothing is finalized.
Memphis still has time to make its case — but the list of people telling it to move keeps getting longer.