LeBron James turned 33 on Saturday. A superstar since he was a teenager, James has been in the spotlight for most of his life. With that has come fortune, amazing accomplishments and the chance to do things few people in the world can do.
But there was one sacrifice James had to make when he became famous so young. According to him, it was tough to get into clubs when he was underage. That’s why his 21st birthday was such a big deal, the Cavaliers superstar said on Saturday.
When reporters asked him to reflect on his past birthdays, he recalled how excited he was when he turned 21 because he could finally show up at a club and not get denied entry at the door.
(🔊⬆️) Even for LeBron, it was a big moment. pic.twitter.com/ENs4p38urp
— ESPN (@espn) December 30, 2017
While you might think being the most famous teenage basketball player in the world could help some venues look the other way, James said his fame made it too risky for clubs letting in clearly underage drinkers.
“People had known my story for so long,” James explained. “So there was always certain clubs and stuff that we would go to and people would be like ‘Come on, LeBron, we know you’re not 21. We cannot let you in here and mess up our liquor license.’ So 21 was pretty cool.”
The best part, James said, was going to Las Vegas when he was finally old enough to fully enjoy it.
“Especially when I went to Vegas because I was playing USA basketball so much, so when I turned 21 and went to Vegas that summer I was like, ‘I’m back.’ And I was so happy to show my card to them. I was like, BOW! I’m 21, let me up in here!”
The introspection is pretty hilarious, but it also shows how far James has come in his career. His days of hoping in vain to get into clubs are long gone, but at 33, he’s somehow playing some of his best basketball yet. These days he seems more concerned about getting to good wineries over nightclubs, anyway.
