When Joe Theismann watches LeBron James play basketball, he sees a potential NFL quarterback.
The former Washington Redskins quarterback expressed his belief in telephone interviews to Fox Sports Florida on Saturday and to the NFL Network's "NFL AM" show Tuesday.
"I would love to work him out and also serve as his agent. I'll go wherever he wants this summer. He could play another four years in the NBA before seriously trying the NFL," Theismann told Fox Sports Florida. "There are not a lot of 38- or 39-year-old basketball players, but there are 38- and 39-year-old quarterbacks, so there's always time for him."
Theismann on Tuesday told the NFL Network that his comment about serving as James' agent was made "tongue-in-cheek" but he was sincere in his belief that the NBA superstar could play quarterback.
"Who wouldn't want to coach LeBron James? He's the most physical specimen we have in professional sports," he told the NFL Network. "He could do, I think, anything he wanted."
Theismann said the biggest thing the NBA's reigning MVP would have to work on is his footwork, which he said is the "most important element" to throwing the ball accurately at the NFL level. He also wonders whether James' hands are too big to wrap around the football.
But there's no doubt, Theismann said, that the 6-foot-8, 250-pound James has the mental toughness to play quarterback.
"He's as mentally as tough a guy you're going to find, which I think is the No. 1 prerequisite to play the position," he told the NFL Network.
James played receiver for two seasons at St. Vincent-St. Mary High School. He was asked whether he could play quarterback after the Heat's Game 1 victory over the Indiana Pacers last week.
"I have the ability," James told reporters. "I can see and read plays. I study a lot, so I know defenses and things of that nature. So I would have been pretty good if I had decided to go for it."