LeBron James' much-hyped "Second Decision," which many fans expected to feature an announcement about his retirement plans, turned out Tuesday to be an ad for a liquor company.
James teased the announcement in a 10-second video posted Monday on X, calling it "the decision of all decisions." That was a reference to the Lakers star's notorious 2010, live-television announcement that he was leaving the Cleveland Cavaliers to join the Miami Heat.
James took enormous criticism for the nature of that event, especially his remark that he was "taking my talents to South Beach." He subsequently said he regretted how that announcement was handled, but he appeared to forget that lesson with Tuesday's video and Monday's mysterious post, which fueled speculation that James' was about to reveal his basketball future -- possibly his retirement -- as he enters his 23rd NBA season.
The video posted Monday showed two chairs facing each other on a basketball court, in a setup similar to the original "Decision." An unidentified man sat in the right chair as James entered the frame from behind the camera, sat down on the left and placed his hands on his lap. Then the video dramatically cut to a slide reading "The Second Decision / Coming Soon."
The actual, full video released Tuesday featured James announcing a new product partnership with Hennessy, the cognac brand he has endorsed for some time.
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"This fall, I'm going to be taking my talents to Hennessy V.S.O.P.," James says in the video, which ends with him proclaiming, "I like my decision."
The liquor company announced earlier Tuesday that it was releasing a limited-edition orange bottle featuring James' name on the label.
Although James' teaser video Monday set off a round of speculation about his NBA future, there were some on the internet who predicted it would be some sort of product endorsement, and they proved to be correct.
James will turn 41 in December. He is the league's all-time leading scorer, and a four-time NBA champion. He has acknowledged his playing days are nearing an end, though he has offered few specifics on when he plans to retire, and is set to become an unrestricted free agent after this season.
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