LeBron recalls wanting to play for Bearcats: 'I loved Cincinnati'

LeBron James never played basketball at the college level, but he dreamed of suiting up for Cincinnati as a kid.

On the latest episode of his "Mind the Game" podcast with JJ Reddick, the Los Angeles Lakers star recalled wanting to play for Cincinnati at a young age because of the uniforms and former head coach Bob Huggins.

"I loved Cincinnati, with Logan and Ruben Patterson and Kenyon Martin and all those guys," James said. "Then when Kenny Satterfield stepped in, DerMarr Johnson, it was like, I don't know ... I remember as a kid watching it. When I was growing up, I wanted to go to Cincinnati because of the uniforms and because of Huggs."

Huggins coached at Cincinnati from 1989 to 2005, leading the Bearcats to 14 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, including a trip to the Final Four in 1992.

James, a native of Akron, Ohio, skipped college to enter the 2003 NBA Draft, where the Cleveland Cavaliers selected him No. 1 overall.