“Transcending basketball”: Nichols previews LeBron, DWade interview airing tonight

On the eve of the NBA season, Rachel Nichols, host of ESPN’s The Jump, conducted a special sit-down interview with new Cleveland Cavaliers teammates and long-time friends LeBron James and Dwayne Wade.

The interview touches on a variety of subjects, spanning the gamut from professional to personal, and serious to silly. Part of the interview will air tonight during halftime of ESPN’s Monday Night Football telecast, while a full version will air on the postgame SportsCenter with Scott Van Pelt.

“They have the great ease that comes when you’ve been friends with someone for nearly half your life, and you’ve just been through it all together,” Nichols said. “And not just through it on the court – although they have, and we’ve seen plenty of major moments between them – but off the court, too.

“Dwyane talks in this interview about the first week he had full custody of his sons, who at the time were eight and three years old, and how he was calling LeBron over and over for help and advice on the littlest things, like what to make them for lunch for school. That’s a friendship that transcends basketball.”