A definitive timeline of the friendship between LeBron James and Ben Simmons

Ben Simmons and LeBron James have eerily similar games on the court, but their relationship goes far deeper than anything on the court. They’ve built a real friendship over the last couple years.

“I’m honored that a young, gifted kid would even allow me to be a part of his life and be able to mentor him and be a big brother to him,” James said before Cleveland’s matchup against Simmons’ 76ers on TNT (8 p.m. Thursday). “I will continue to do that as long as he’d like me to.”

When did it start? It’s hard to pinpoint an exact moment, but it seems to stem from a moment in 2015, before Simmons even hit LSU’s campus in Baton Rouge.

Before Simmons started his collegiate career at LSU in the fall of 2015, he was a camp counselor in the first Nike Basketball Academy where the top prospects from around the country come to learn from the game’s best minds. Nike’s best NBA players show up to teach and get some run in, too.

Simmons showed up and went up against the best of the best NBA players and held his own. James Harden, Anthony Davis, Kevin Durant, and of course, LeBron James all participated in the camp. James even invited Simmons to work out with him and Dwyane Wade at 6:30 a.m., according to Sports Illustrated’s Lee Jenkins.

Jenkins’ profile also revealed another key moment of that first chance meeting: James’ high praise of Simmons.

“You have an opportunity to be better than me,” LeBron told Simmons. “But you can’t skip steps. You have to do the work.”

I’d love to have been a fly on the wall.

Like many players, Simmons clearly looks up to James. But their relationship goes a step beyond what other players may have with James. Simmons called James his mentor and said he looked at him as a “big brother.”

“He gives me a lot of advice if I ever need it,” Simmons said. “He looks out for me, and he’s one of those people you have to have as a mentor because he’s one of the best players in the world.”

And you know it’s real when James doesn’t mind the comparisons.

“Someone’s going to be compared to someone all the time, and I don’t mind him being compared to me. People not only recognizing what he does on the floor, but he’s a great kid, too. He has a great family, great support system, and that’s why he’s able to do what he [does] on the floor,” James said.

With LSU ineligible to enter the NCAA tournament, Simmons’ collegiate career came to an end. And that was made official when Simmons’ signed with James’ business partner Rich Paul and Klutch Sports.

“It’s another family for me. Now it’s all about putting in that hard work and getting ready for the next level,” Simmons said when he announced his signing.

James is Klutch’s most prominent client and Simmons’ agent is one of James’ best friends. Simmons called James his big brother and says he just gained another “family” with his new agency. Coincidence? I think not.

Simmons and James are two of the select few who have been number one overall picks, so James certainly had some good advice in his pocket for his little brother.

What was it? Don’t pay attention to everything written about you.

“I’ve learned a lot just being around LeBron,” Simmons told the New York Times. “People say things about him all the time, but he would never say anything back. That’s what I learned from him: Don’t retaliate to articles or pieces or to things that are said about me.”

That’s nothing new or profound from James, but a good piece of advice for his little brother nonetheless.

How often do we see rookies get to sit in on a LeBron James workout? You can’t tell me Simmons and James ain’t tight. Dwyane Wade was there, too.

Simmons fractured his foot during a preseason practice with the 76ers before he could even play his first real game and had surgery on it a week later. Simmons sat out the entire season, which was the right decision and also one James supported.

“He’s a young guy. He’s got to make sure he’s patient and not get frustrated with the process because obviously I know I would want to get on the floor. But he has a long career in front of him and he just has to be patient, let the foot heal and when he gets back on the floor then he’ll show why he’s the No. 1 pick,” James said.

Now that’s a big brother quote.

When the Cavaliers were going through their struggles this summer with their front office, everyone was talking about how James would be better off elsewhere. Did Simmons catch wind of that? Maybe. In the midst of it all, he dropped this tweetbomb.

PHEW! James on the 76ers with Embiid and Simmons? Just give them the trophy now. But not so fast. Big brother had a wisecrack for Simmons a couple days later on his birthday.

This has crossed the line into adorable. Please get these guys on the same team.

Maybe they actually had that drink James joked about? The two met again in Las Vegas when the 76ers were about to play the Cavs in the NBA Summer League.

They even got a workout in.

Chatter about this friendship has died down as the two have focused on their respective teams, but James has found moments to admire Simmons from afar.

This was during Philadelphia’s game against the Celtics in London:

This was during a down moment before All-Star Weekend:

Speaking of All-Star Weekend, Simmons added even more fuel to the fire by posting this picture with fellow Klutch Sports clients John Wall and Tristan Thompson. The caption? “June 30,” which refers to the final day before free agency begins.

It’s rare to see James broadcasting his relationship with players around the league aside from the Banana Boat crew. But Simmons seems to be one of those players James is actually close with and the feeling seems to be mutual.

It’s great to see these two developing a bond given their similar playing styles. Will we see them playing together at some point? Who knows. Let’s just appreciate their matchup against each other on Thursday night.