LeBron James turned a tough childhood into living the dream as one of the greatest to ever play the game of basketball. 

His rags to riches story is just one of the things that makes him such a compelling figure in sports. James has lived an exemplary life, and by all accounts seems to be a very good guy. That - along with his generational talents - is one of the reasons players flock to play with him. 

James made the jump to the NBA straight from high school, becoming a household name as the next pre-college phenom to take the league by storm. Surely one of the most surreal moments as he career took off was holding his first pair of signature Nike sneakers. 

James inked a massive deal with Nike before he was even drafted, his profile so high sneaker companies were fighting for the right to add LeBron into their cabinet of athletes. His first signature shoe was the Nike Zoom Generation 1, which he wore in his first season in the NBA. 

The latest episode of The Uninterrupted's "The Barber Shop" features James reflecting on that moment as one of the patrons in the shop getting his hair cut alongside LeBron is wearing a pair. 

"They just take me back man. The Zoom Generation 1. That's the beginning man, that's where it all took place. That's the 18 year old kid right there," James said when it's pointed out to him. 

"I remember when they showed me when I was going over my meetings before the season. At that point and time my shoe wasn't completed yet...

"They bring the box to me, first game on the road and I open the box up it had my kicks in there, and it had a headband in there and a pair of socks," James said.

And what did James do when he held his first of many signature shoes in his hands? He took a big whiff of the inside of the fresh created Nike, taking in the equivalent of the new car smell for sneaker enthusiasts.

"You smell the inside, of course... You smell the inside of the shoes. That comes with it," James said when asked what the first thing he did with his new sneakers in hand.

That's a moment many only dream of. That he made it to that point at the young age of 18, against all odds, surely made it surreal experience as he prepared to chase his NBA dream as a Cleveland Cavalier.