The reaction of the fan LeBron James sat down next to her (from Twitter)
This cute video captured the United States: Gaia Kimchi, a 12-year-old girl with a name that suggests being Israeli, became today's sensation in the NBA after LeBron James sat down next to her during the game against Golden State held tonight in San Francisco.
Kimchi, a Golden State fan and die-hard LeBron fan, is seen in the video reacting in total shock to the presence of James, who nonchalantly sits down next to her at the end of the Lakers' bench, while she struggles to hide her excitement.
This small and symbolic moment, which illustrates what a child's authentic admiration for a great athlete looks like, soon became a viral video.
Less than an hour after it went up on the NBA's Twitter and Instagram accounts, it had racked up 1.2 million views.
The social media buzz around Kimchi even prompted ESPN linebacker Lisa Salters to approach her and interview her during the game — all while LeBron, who was out due to injury, sat next to her.
"When we bought these tickets, I was hoping that LeBron would break Kareem Abdul Jabbar's scoring record in this game. I asked for tickets to be bought for me three months ago," said Kimchi, who was sitting at the game next to her older brother, Liam.
"I was very excited to come to this game and watch LeBron live, even after he broke the record, but when I heard he was injured, I was sad and didn't know if he would come here at all... and suddenly he appeared before my eyes."
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The video - and the photo as a souvenir
Kimchi said that "when he passed me, I could only see his shoes. I'm short, and he's huge. Suddenly I raised my head, I see LeBron James in front of me. I thought to myself, 'OMG, I'm sitting next to the greatest basketball player of all time.' . I completely freaked out. I thought to myself, 'This is the best moment of my life.'"
The prestigious seats in which the Kimchi brothers sat, are usually reserved for seasoned season ticket holders, and in any case those sitting in them are advised not to contact the players sitting next to them under any circumstances.
This was the reason why, despite the great excitement, Kimchi did not speak to LeBron during the game.
The interview on ESPN
fulfill a dream.
Gaia Kimchi next to LeBron (photo: screenshot, from Instagram)
LeBron James next to the fan who became a viral phenomenon (photo: screenshot, from Instagram)
After the game in which the Lakers won 103:109, she plucked up courage and turned to LeBron, and it ended in a picture together.
Unlike a standard photo of fans posing with their favorite athletes, this photo won't just make its way into the family album.
The Lakers leveraged the hype well, and also uploaded to the official accounts the photo of LeBron and Hilda Kimchi, a permanent star next to the star of the hour.
This photo also received thousands of likes, befitting a viral phenomenon.
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