{"id":2069255,"date":"2026-07-30T13:33:38","date_gmt":"2026-07-30T10:33:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2069255"},"modified":"2026-07-30T13:33:38","modified_gmt":"2026-07-30T10:33:38","slug":"lebron-james-espn-close-to-major-deal-for-last-dance-esque-documentary-sources","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2069255","title":{"rendered":"LeBron James, ESPN close to major deal for \u2018Last Dance\u2019-esque documentary: Sources"},"content":{"rendered":"
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LeBron James and ESPN are closing in on an agreement for a behind-the-scenes documentary series that will be similar to Michael Jordan\u2019s \u201cThe Last Dance,\u201d according to industry sources granted anonymity as they were not authorized to talk about the deal that is not finalized.<\/p>\n

One of the sources described the talks as being at the \u201c1-yard line,\u201d with the expectation that James, 41, will have a camera crew documenting his time with the Philadelphia 76ers, who James signed with this month. The 76ers are expected to be the final home of his legendary career.<\/p>\n

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The documentary is expected to also use footage from earlier in James\u2019 career, as NBA crews have filmed him since he was a rookie, including some never-before-seen footage.<\/p>\n

The financial terms and potential other components of the agreement are not yet known. When Netflix picked up the eight-episode Jerry Jones\/Dallas Cowboys documentary, Puck reported the deal<\/a> was for slightly less than $50 million.<\/p>\n

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{“endpoint”:”https:\/\/api-prd-nyt.theathletic.com\/graphql”}<\/p>\n

For the James\u2019 documentary, there is no set date for when it would be completed and air. ESPN and a representative for James declined comment.<\/p>\n

James, a four-time NBA champion, signed a two-year, $8 million deal with the 76ers on July 26.<\/p>\n

Jordan\u2019s 10-part documentary was a cultural phenomenon as it aired during the spring of 2020 when sports were shut down due to the Covid pandemic. ESPN broadcast the shows weekly and then ESPN and Netflix both housed them on their apps. \u201cThe Last Dance\u201d won a Primetime Emmy Award for \u201cOutstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series\u201d in 2020.<\/p>\n

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James and Jordan are widely considered among the two greatest players in NBA history. Jordan\u2019s career was mostly pre-internet, which allowed his career to be slightly less under the spotlight compared to James.<\/p>\n

As a 17-year-old junior in high school, James was on the cover of Sports Illustrated in February 2002. His career has occurred during the growth of the internet, the iPhone and social media, making it even more difficult for any privacy.<\/p>\n

With the archival film and with a crew following James around with the 76ers, it will be a behind-the-scenes look at his career. The documentarians may try to deviate from the template of Jordan\u2019s \u201cLast Dance,\u201d but like most everything between the two all-time greats there will inevitably be comparisons.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

LeBron James and ESPN are closing in on an agreement for a behind-the-scenes documentary series that will be similar to Michael Jordan\u2019s \u201cThe Last Dance,\u201d according to industry sources granted anonymity as they were not authorized to talk about the deal that is not finalized. One of the sources described the talks as being at […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,241],"class_list":["post-2069255","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-nytimes-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2069255","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2069255"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2069255\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2069255"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2069255"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2069255"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}