LeBron James makes a stop in London to help promote basketball in Britain

King James makes a stop in London

LONDON — King James got a royal greeting Saturday.

LeBron James spoke to dozens of children wearing T-shirts with “Earn the crown” and “The King is coming” written on them during a stop in his promotional tour.

The Cleveland Cavaliers star has been traveling the world to promote his documentary, “More Than A Game.” His visit to the British capital was aimed at helping spread basketball to areas of London troubled by gang violence.

The 2009 MVP reiterated that he doesn’t yet know whether he will stay with Cleveland or test free agency when his contract ends after the coming season.

“I haven’t decided,” said James, who added that he is looking forward to Shaquille O’Neal’s arrival in Cleveland.

“I think it’s going to be great,” he added. “It’s an opportunity to play with a Hall of Famer. He demands respect.”

The youngsters who took part in Saturday’s program got to hear what James did to make his way to the NBA.

“I wanted to play ball no matter what time of the day it was, no matter what the weather was,” he said. “Playing ball for me was a release as a kid.”

He also showed off some of his court prowess. James grabbed a ball from one of the kids and dunked it, drawing huge cheers. The run-down court will be turned into a 500-seat facility as part of the program James was promoting.

“I was blessed and fortunate that we were allowed to have courts to play on,” he said.

James was following the path of another basketball great during this visit. Michael Jordan walked through the same halls of this south London school in 2006 to promote a similar program.