'With me when I had nothing': LeBron James was 17 when he met his 'queen'

LeBron James is considered one of, if not the greatest basketballer of all time.He is also the oldest player in the US National Basketball League (NBL), where he is still shooting hoops for the Los Angeles Lakers at the age of 39.But while his sporting prowess and commitment to the game have seen him rise to the top of the basketball world and become a billionaire along the way, he says none of it would be possible without his 'queen' wife, Savannah, with whom he shares three children, including newly drafted NBA player Bronny James.READ MORE: Moment Matthew Broderick knew Sarah Jessica Parker was 'the one'LeBron James was born on December 30, 1984, to mother Gloria James, who was 16 when he was born. His father, Anthony McClelland, was not involved in his life.With his mother struggling to provide a stable home life, James moved in with the family of a local youth football coach, Frank Walker, who introduced him to basketball when he was nine.He later joined the Northeast Ohio Shooting Stars, which won Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) basketball local and national competitions.He went on to attend the predominantly white St Vincent–St Mary High School, where he immediately turned heads in part due to his soaring height, which jumped from 188cm to 201cm by the time he was 16.READ MORE: Handsome Frenchman who is Aussie Olympian Jessica Fox's secret weaponIn 2002, when he was 17, a local girl from a different school caught his eye and he asked a friend to get her number for him.Savannah, who is a year younger than LeBron, recalled what happened during a 2017 interview with Cleveland Magazine."I'm like, 'Um, nope. I'll take his number,'" she said."One day, I'm sitting around – I was probably bored or something – and I'm like, 'Oh, I forgot! I have this number for this guy that I can call. He seemed interested, so let's see.'"LeBron invited her to one of his basketball games."I went, and I was like, 'Wow, this guy is pretty popular in here,'" she recalled during a 2010 interview with Harper's Bazaar.Their first proper date, to an Outback Steakhouse restaurant, followed soon after. She said she knew he was 'the one' when she left her container of leftovers in his car and he drove back to return it to her.The relationship progressed quickly, with the two becoming inseparable, but she said she never thought he would go on to such sporting greatness."I just thought he'd be a hometown hero for his era and it would be over. He was a normal high school senior," she said.The couple faced their first test at the end of her final year of high school when Savannah found out she was pregnant.LeBron had gone straight from school into the NBA system after winning first overall pick in the 2003 NBA draft for his hometown team, the Cleveland Cavaliers."I was thinking, 'What am I going to tell my parents? What's going to happen to his career?'" Savannah recalled to Harper's Bazaar."I was very scared. I was bawling. But he said, 'It's not going to slow me down, and it's not going to slow you down. We're going to keep doing what we have to do.'"The couple's son, LeBron "Bronny" James Jr, was born in October 2004 when LeBron was 19 and his wife was 18.Far from slowing his career, LeBron was named Rookie of the Year.The couple's second son Bryce arrived in June 2007.While many partners of pro athletes enjoy the limelight, Savannah was happy to take a backseat in the early days to care for her family, as she told The Cut in 2023."That time, to be honest, was spent pouring into my boys. I just really wanted to enjoy being a mum and supporting my husband. I wasn't super-comfortable with putting myself out like that," she said.In 2010, LeBron left the Cleveland Cavaliers after seven seasons to go to Miami Heat, where he spent four seasons before returning to Cleveland.LeBron married his high school sweetheart on September 14, 2013, in San Diego, California. Their only daughter, Zhuri, was born in October 2014.Savannah started a number of business enterprises, which she juggled with raising their three kids while LeBron was on the road.She opened a fresh juice store when the family lived in Miami. She and LeBron later launched a furniture line called Home Court.She also devotes a great deal of time to various charitable organisation, including their own, and co-hosts a podcast.In 2018, LeBron headed to the LA Lakers, where he remains today. His current two-year contract is worth $157 million, making him the third highest earner in the 2023-24 season.Now worth a staggering $1.8 billion, LeBron has reflected on his success and says he would not be where he is today without Savannah.During a 2018 Harlem's Fashion Row gala event where he was being honoured, he said of his wife, "We have been down since high school. Savannah was with me shooting in the gym when I [had] absolutely nothing."Savannah told Cleveland Magazine their relationship was built on respect."He is truly a king to his queen, if you will," she said."He treats me with so much respect – I mean, it's hard to not love him, with the way that he is with me and the kids and his mum and just everyone who's around him."He's a really, really humble guy for everything that he has and everything that he's done."LeBron and Savannah have been together 22 years and celebrated their 11th wedding anniversary this year.In 2023, Bronny James signed to play college football with the University of Southern California.He was taking part in a practice session in July 2023 when the then 18-year-old suffered a cardiac arrest.His heart was able to be restarted and he was rushed to hospital. It was later found he suffered from a congenital heart defect and underwent treatment.He was cleared to resume playing four months later.Bronny was drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers in 2024 and in October, he and his father became the first ever father and son to play in an NBA team.FOLLOW US ON WHATSAPP HERE: Stay across all the latest in celebrity, lifestyle and opinion via our WhatsApp channel. No comments, no algorithm and nobody can see your private details.