We are only a few days away from the 10th Anniversary of LeBron James announcing his intentions to join Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, and the Miami Heat. The anniversary was the central figure in a new investigative series called “Backstory,” which aired on Sunday, as well as plenty of reporting from other people who covered LeBron’s momentous free agency at the time.
In a series that looks back at three pivotal days before LeBron announced he would join the Heat, an ESPN’s Brian Windhorst offered a new detail from the Chicago Bulls’ failed pursuit of LeBron. Joakim Noah, then still a young player, but one who had clashed with LeBron a few times already, called LeBron to ask him to join the team. But LeBron never called back.
Another reason offered as to why the Bulls didn’t sign any of the three stars was the lack of involvement from a young Derrick Rose.
While this was always known to the principles, this little detail adds a little bit more intrigue to the budding Clippers-Lakers rivalry. The Clippers signed Noah last week for the home stretch, joining a long list of longtime LeBron rivals, including Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, and head coach Doc Rivers.
