02-09-2009

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LeBron James Visits Europe. More Than a Game World Tour Hits Paris. »

NBA MVP, LeBron James, and Parisian hoop fans gathered yesterday to celebrate the sport of basketball with a youth tournament held at the city’s legendary Grand Palais. The stop in Paris marks the seventh city on the overall LeBron James World Tour, with events occurring in the city from September 1-3. At the “More than a Camp” event, sixty of the best basketball players ages 14 to 16 years gathered at the French capital’s mythical location. The camp was directed by Dru Joyce, James’ coach at St. Vincent-St. Mary High School (Akron, Ohio), with the best players selected for the All Star game in the afternoon. These players faced the best players from Tony Parker’s basketball camp, held in Fecamp this past July. The two stars of the NBA sat on the sidelines to share their experiences with these future stars of the basketball courts.

LeBron James’ first steps in France led him onto the playgrounds of the French capital. In the morning James and Orlando player Mike Pietrus toured the playgrounds of Paris. On this occasion, they selected players for their respective teams for the second match held in the afternoon under the canopy of the Grand Palais. Le House of Hoops Dunk Contest fired up during the halftime of that second game. Only the eight best dunkers selected showed-off their talents to James, who presided over the jury with Tony Parker and Mike Pietrus. The grand winner will have the great honour of challenging the sport’s elite at the All-Star Game next December 30 in Bercy. On Wednesday, September 2, LeBron James will be on the Champs Elysees to introduce the film More Than A Game, accompanied by director Kristopher Belman. This documentary feature retraces James` journey through adolescence both on and off the court, with his teammates from St. Vincent-St. Mary High School in Akron, Ohio. Coinciding with the arrival in Paris of the phenomenon of the basketball world, Nike and Footlocker will on Thursday, September 3, inaugurate House of Hoops, a unique retail outlet in Halles specializing in basketball. At this store, Nike and Jordan Brand products will all be available under one roof. One hundred pairs of limited-edition Nike Air Max LeBron VIIs will be available for the store opening. Each of the limited edition pairs will feature an image from the film More Than A Game, with each city visited by LeBron featuring a different image.

LeBron Tour Paris Schedule:

• Tuesday September 1: 1:00-4:00 pm: Draft day : LeBron James and Mike Pietrus share the following playgrounds to select their teams: Tolbiac (Charles Moureux Stadium), Champs de Mars, Porte de Charenton (Poniatowski Stadium) Porte de Choisy (Carpentier Stadium), Glaciere. 12:30 pm: Press Preview of the film More Than a Game, Grand Palais 3:30-4:30 pm Press Conference, Grand Palais 4:45 pm: Start of matches, Grand Palais
• Wednesday, September 2: 9.00 pm: Preview of the film More Than a Game, Publicis theatre, Champs-Elysées
• Thursday, September 3: 11:00 am: Inauguration of House of Hoops, 14 Rue Pierre Lescot 75001 Paris