LeBron due for Nike Rise cage bash

MANILA, Philippines - NBA superstar LeBron James hits town today to grace the Nike Rise Philippines’ developmental program and at the same time serve as mentor of the finalists of the Nike Rise project against a UAAP selection at the MOA tomorrow.

While Nike won’t confirm James’ itinerary, the four-time NBA MVP will hold a press conference tomorrow at 3 p.m. for the Nike Rise, a reality documentary program aimed at looking for street ball talents from the countryside and putting them in a program where they have a chance to succeed.

He will then have a brief stop at The Fort then head to the MOA Arena for the 7:15 p.m. match. He is also set to play in an exhibition game.

Nike actually announced Friday that tickets for the MOA event will be given free on a first-come, first-served basis through the Nike webpage which only took minutes to be filled up.

It will be the Cleveland Cavs star’s second visit to the country in three years. Then as a Miami Heat, he visited the country for the first time in rainy July two years ago as part of a whirlwind, multi-city tour also sponsored by Nike.

Unlike the first time, however, James is reportedly taking a few days vacation in one of the country’s top tourist spots after the Nike Rise tour.

In 11 seasons, James is already considered the best player in the planet having won the NBA title twice, the Finals MVP twice, the season MVP four times, made the All-Star 11 times and won the All-Star MVP twice.

James is ranked behind the likes of Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Tim Duncan and Kobe Bryant as one of the best players to ever played the game.