The Knicks got James Gandolfini to reprise Tony Soprano character to recruit LeBron James to New York

Back in 2010, the New York Knicks tried getting James Gandolfini to try and help the team recruit LeBron James to Madison Square Garden. 

How in the heck was Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James able to say no to this? That’s what countless NBA fans must be asking themselves after they found out the New York Knicks tried using Tony Soprano to get James to town more than 10 years ago. Confused? Let us explain.

On the podcast ‘Shattered: Hope, Heartbreak and the New York Knicks,’ it was revealed that the team had actor James Gandolfini reprise his role as Soprano to film a video to try and recruit James to New York. Not only that, Gandolfini was joined by actress Edie Clark, who performed her brilliant role as Soprano’s wife Carmela.

The Knicks filmed a video with James Gandolfini in an attempt to lure LeBron James to New York

For fans of The Sopranos, this is truly a wild story. Imagine if James would have ended up making his way to Madison Square Garden and he revealed that the video of Gandolfini and Clark helped send things over the top. If that proved to be the case, Gandolfini’s legend in New York and New Jersey only would have grown.

Unfortunately for Knicks fans, James never made his way to New York, as he’s suited up for Cleveland, Miami and now Los Angeles instead. Fans in all five boroughs had always dreamed of the man known as King James suiting up for the Knicks, but that never materialized. Instead, James has gone on to win four NBA Finals elsewhere.

You’ve got to give props to the Knicks here, though, as they really got creative in trying to land one of the best athletes the world has ever seen.