The king has named his successor.
Lakers superstar LeBron James, long dubbed “King James,” bestowed upon Chiefs stud tight end Travis Kelce the honor of being the new most famous athlete from Northeast Ohio amid the latter’s romantic relationship with Taylor Swift.
“Listen, sometimes you’ve gotta give the crown up to the next one,” James said on the Thursday Night Football in The Shop alternative broadcast for the Chiefs’ Week 6 win over the Broncos. “What Trav has got going on right now, and the Swifties, I think I’m gonna give the crown to him right now. He deserves it right now.”
Both James and Kelce grew up in Ohio, and James became a hero in the state playing 11 seasons with the Cavaliers across two stints, which included leading the team to its first-ever championship in 2016.
Kelce’s romance with Swift has taken the NFL and celebrity worlds by storm, and pop star was in attendance at Arrowhead Stadium for Thursday night’s clash, which Kansas City won, 19-8.
Earlier this month, James shouted out Kelce’s podcast with his brother Jason, a center on the Eagles.
“Crazy I can’t get a invite to join yall fantastic show [sic],” James posted on X. “Is it because you guys are truly the Kings of NE Ohio and I claim to be? Be honest! Seriously you guys are AWESOME!!”
Entering the game with a balky ankle, Kelce hauled in nine receptions for 124 yards in Thursday night’s win.
Swift was in Los Angeles just one day prior on Wednesday, attending a star-studded premiere for her “Eras Tour” film before flying into Kansas City for the game.
She appeared to stay over at Kelce’s house Thursday night after the game, according to photos obtained by the Daily Mail, and continued her stay to Friday night, TMZ later reported.
“I was on top of the world after the Super Bowl, and right now even more on top of the world, so it’s fun man,” Kelce told reporters last week.
“At the same time, [the attention] comes with it. You’ve got a lot of people that care about Taylor, for good reason. So… just gotta keep living and earning and enjoying the moments.”
