Lakers News: Does LeBron James Want To Play College Ball?

Apparently King James is open to making his college athletics debut in service of another sport...

Your Los Angeles Lakers' best player is contemplating a life beyond the NBA. But don't worry, that probably won't happen for a while yet.

L.A. forward LeBron James seemed to hint that he's open to playing college ball -- albeit not college basketball (for which he would be ineligible, anyway).

Now, it appears he's taking a page from his former Cavaliers and Lakers championship-era teammate J.R. Smith:

Do I have college eligibility if I went to play another sport besides basketball? How does that rule work?

— LeBron James (@KingJames) September 24, 2022

Smith, another NBA player who opted to forego the NCAA and head straight to the league, is now a student at North Carolina AT&T State University playing for the school's golf team. Though the 37-year-old former shooting guard still appears to be hopeful he can return to the NBA, he's making the most of his post-basketball life.

The 18-time All-Star is known to be a massive Ohio State University fan, so most likely this is where he would try to land. Though he went straight to the NBA after finishing his title-winning tenure at St. Mary-St. Vincent High School in Akron, Ohio, James has indicated that he would have played his college ball at OSU. 

Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith notes that James should still be eligible to compete as a college amateur in a sport he never played professionally:

@KingJames - If you never enrolled full-time in college and didn’t compete in the sport that you want to play after HS graduation, you could have eligibility remaining. If you professionalize in one sport, you can still be considered an amateur in another.
Would love to help you!

— Ross Bjork (@OSU_AD) September 25, 2022

It would certainly make the most sense for James to wait out his pro hoops career before turning to college athletics in another sport, so presumably that's what he's considering.

James has said he hopes to remain in the NBA long enough to play alongside both his sons, LeBron "Bronny" James Jr. and Bryce. At the earliest, provided the current Collective Bargaining Agreement is amended to allow 18-year-old players straight out of high school to enter the draft, that could happen in 2025, ahead of LeBron's age-41 season.

The 6'9" All-Star small forward was once a top high school wide receiver prospect, and actually considered making the leap to the NFL during the NBA's extended 2011 lockout. In 2026, after 23 years of pro basketball, would James really want to play a game as high-impact as intense as college football? Time will tell.

Meanwhile, the OSU love affair shows no signs of slowing down. Beyond that veritable thirst tweet, James recently donated personalized Beats Studio3 wireless headphones to the team, per Colin Gay of The Columbus Dispatch.

LeBron and Bronny recently visited OSU on a basketball visit for Bronny -- and to take in OSU's first football game of the year, of course. The Buckeyes went on to defeat Notre Dame 21-10 in Ohio Stadium. After he finishes his senior season at Sierra Canyon School in Chatsworth this year, Bronny is considering colleges, a G League run, or suiting up for Australia's National Basketball League (NBL) in 2023-24.