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LeBron James perfectly fits the bill of an NBA superstar with a career on the big screen. He's a megastar on the court, a high-profile, outspoken personality off it, and now the final piece of the puzzle is complete with his move to Los Angeles. NBA stars making appearances on the big screen is nothing new.
We've seen Ray Allen as Jesus Shuttlesworth, Kyrie Irving as Uncle Drew, Shaquille O'Neal as Kazaam, Michael Jordan and co. as themselves in Space Jam (a film worthy of an Oscar in my humble opinion), and many others. Kobe Bryant even won an Oscar earlier this year for his animated short 'Dear Basketball'.
The trend of NBA stars loving the Hollywood spotlight isn't new, either; Hall of famers Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Julius Erving both appeared in films in the 1970s.
LeBron isn't new to the big screen after starring in many documentaries about his life and making cameo appearances in cartoons and movies such as SpongeBob SquarePants, Teen Titans, and Trainwreck. There is one title, however, that we've been waiting his whole career to see: SPACE JAM 2. It was announced in 2014 that Space Jam 2 would be happening, but very few details have since followed (besides a cryptic cartoon featuring Blake Griffin, more on that in a moment).
The IMDB page for Space Jam 2 exists, but even with some good detective work the only details it gives away are that LeBron will be starring in it, two no-name actors with a combined six titles on their IMDB filmography pages have been confirmed as extras for some reason, and, as expected, several other NBA all-stars will be featuring in the film. The description for the film says "LeBron James and several other NBA All-Stars team up with the Looney Tunes for this long-awaited sequel".
It confirms what we already know, but it also raises a far more important question: who will be the NBA all-stars teaming up with LeBron? Here are some current and former NBA all-stars who fit the bill.
Wildcards
Not everyone in Space Jam was an all-star; remember Muggsy Bogues and Shawn Bradley? Isaiah Thomas has publicly stated his desire to fill the short guy role in Space Jam 2, which makes sense given he's the shortest player in the league. He missed out on the big payday he deserved, he went through hell in last year's playoffs, and now he is basically irrelevant. Please Warner Bros, let the man be Muggsy 2.0 at least.
Thomas is in as Muggsy, then Boban Marjanovic - the tallest player in the league - has to be in as Shawn Bradley.
I don't care in what capacity, but ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith absolutely has to get some screen time. Just imagine a classic Stephen A. Smith rant about the events of NBA players having their talents stolen. It would be magical.
Kevin Love or Kyrie Irving could each create a fun dynamic as former teammates of LeBron's. Another former teammate in J.R. Smith would be hilarious after the events of the 2018 NBA Finals.
Al Horford randomly strikes me as a guy who would be a randomly talented actor, I could see him playing a Patrick Ewing-type role well.
And last but most certainly not least, the only basketball player better than Michael Jordan, LaVar Ball needs to get a gig now that LeBron is on the Lakers with his boy Lonzo. Even if he wasn't, the options for including LaVar are too good to pass up. He could be the comic relief character, just like how Stan (better known as Wayne Knight, even better known as Newman from Seinfeld) provided comic relief in the original Space Jam.
Blake Griffin
Griffin seems like a virtual lock to play a part in the movie following his conveniently-timed partnership with Warner Bros and the Looney Tunes back in 2015, just months after Space Jam 2 was announced. In August 2015, Griffin starred in an ad by Air Jordan and Warner Bros to promote the new Air Fly 4 sneakers.
The ad showed Griffin beating Marvin the Martian in a dunk contest and had a Bugs Bunny cameo. It also featured several too-obvious-to-miss call-backs to Space Jam (besides the obvious NBA/Looney Tunes crossover) including the line "you've got to give him a chance to defend himself, that's cartoon rules".
If you haven't seen Space Jam (which is unforgivable), the Looney Toons get kidnapped by aliens and declare the aliens have to give them a chance to defend themselves. They settle on a basketball game because of the aliens' small height, which is the premise of another call back line in this ad when Griffin says "he's only three feet tall".
This ad seemed like a pretty obvious signifier than Griffin will be in Space Jam 2, but it's not the only reason to suspect he will be involved.
Griffin rates himself as a comedian and an actor, he has had good reviews about his acting and stand-up routine, he loves the spotlight in LA (at least he did, when he was playing there), he is still probably best known for his dunking ability, and he has been outspoken about his desire to star alongside in the movie LeBron. His goofy, fun-loving demeanour will make him a thrill on the big screen.
Kobe Bryant
Just as Space Jam starred Larry Bird, Space Jam 2 should star Kobe in a similar role. The comparisons are pretty perfect: Bird was recently retired when Space Jam was made, he was a rival of Jordan's until his retirement, he was a good friend of Jordan's, he was enjoying a post-playing career largely away from the league, and he was one of the all-time greats. Replace Jordan with LeBron, and Kobe checks all those boxes to play a small supporting role.
He probably wouldn't play a huge role in the movie since he's retired, but who wouldn't love to see a fictional view of Kobe indulging in life's finer things during retirement? Bryant's retirement season farewell tour confirmed something we knew about the legend already: he loves attention, and he craves the spotlight.
Kobe and LeBron are without a doubt the two best players the world has seen since Jordan and Space Jam, so it seems right that Bryant should get some sort of part in the movie. We haven't seen them star in anything together since their iconic puppet commercials. Plus, if you have the chance to include an Oscar Award winner in your movie you can't say no to that, right?
Any of the Warriors' big four
LeBron's greatest rivals should certainly get a gig in the movie in some capacity. Maybe not all of them, but at least one of Steph Curry, Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson or Draymond Green would be great fits in the movie. Space Jam featured two of Jordan's greatest rivals in Patrick Ewing and Charles Barkley, so it seems logical to include LeBron's rivals in the sequel.
All four of the Warriors' perennial all-stars could play a role, but Curry is probably the best suited. He is still the face of the franchise, his emergence was essentially started the whole rivalry between them and LeBron's former team, and he and LeBron get along pretty well by all reports. Thompson and Green both have unique personalities and storied off-court happenings, and Durant is the second-best player in the league behind LeBron, so all three of them would be suitable too.
Any or all of team banana boat
LeBron and his three best friends, fellow NBA all-stars Chris Paul, Dwyane Wade and Carmelo Anthony, are known as team banana boat. They have a storied friendship which often pops up in the off-season when they get together to drink expensive red wine, vacation with their families, and (believe it or not) ride on a banana boat together. They are a powerful quartet whose voice carries a lot of weight in the American community. At the height of their powers they delivered an opening dialogue at the 2016 Espy Awards to speak out against racism and police brutality.
One or all of LeBron's best friends will surely feature in Space Jam 2. Assuming they want to be in it, LeBron is likely to make it happen. Paul might be the best candidate to play a role since he is still playing at a high level while Wade and Anthony are facing insurmountable deficits against father time, but don't be surprised to see all three play a role.
Joel Embiid
Unlike all the previous players, there is no real rhyme or reason to including Joel Embiid here other than the entertainment factor he would bring. Embiid is the most entertaining NBA player on social media, an all-star, and arguably the best young player in the league; there has to be some way to include trusting the process in Space Jam 2.
Personally, I would love to see Embiid playing the fool on the big screen, and I think most NBA fans would agree with me.
