Miami Heat superstar LeBron James has recently been entertaining the idea of crossing over to the NFL, whilst the NBA is embroiled in lockout.

James recently tweeted (yes, tweets are newsworthy now) that he had an interest in joining an NFL team. Seattle Seahawks supremo, Pete Carroll, sarcastically inquired as to whether James knew what the rookie wage was in the NFL; one that is much lower than his current lucrative deal in South Beach. The self-proclaimed ‘king' responded that it was ‘more than he was making now'.

Allow me to say one thing before continuing; I am not one of the many LeBron James ‘haters'. Much of the basketball world has turned against him in the wake of his cringe-worthy ‘Decision', yet my opinion hasn't changed. He is an immense talent - arguably one of the finest to ever grace the hardcourt - and, for me, that's really all that counts.

Such sentiments, however, have meant that I've found myself defending James in the wake of his playoff failings and questionable comments. But in this instance James' comments are indefensible.

At the moment, it would seem that James is unlikely to receive his full-season's worth of NBA salary, yet to say that he is not making any money is blatantly false.

The Ohio native is arguably basketball's highest-profile figure since Michael Jordan retired for the last time. He has been a ‘Sportscenter' regular since his formative years as a high school phenom, before transforming into the poster-boy for the NBA's resurgence over the better part of the last decade. The 2010-11 season was one of the finest and most profitable for the league in years, and it could be easily argued that James was the driving force.

The only superstar that could perhaps challenge James' universal celebrity would be Kobe Bryant, but Bryant never enjoyed the widespread reverence that James did - especially in his Cleveland days.

With such popularity, comes endorsement deals. And in James' case, lots of them.

Nike, McDonalds, Sprite, State Farm and Upper Deck are just a few of the company's that have paid James a king's ransom (plenty of pun intended) to be the face of their brand. A face that would - without knowing the exact finances - come with a presumably hefty price tag.

It's hard to imagine that James will be counting his pennies during the NBA lockout.

Nor he should; in fact, no NBA player should.

The average yearly wage for an NBA player is approximately US $3.5 million. That's an entire $1million more than their counterparts in the two other leading US sporting leagues, the NFL and MLB.

Money shouldn't - I stress, shouldn't - be a problem for them.

Yet in the aftermath that has followed the league officially cancelling the opening two weeks of the NBA season, players have portrayed themselves as Oliver Twist, at least in public perception.

The players' frustration is understandable: they want to play and they're the primary attraction in a league driven by individual brilliance more than any other team sport, but officials have called a halt to their livelihood. Without getting into specifics, they've been willing to concede over a quarter of a billion dollars in negotiations with the NBA, only to be told it wasn't enough.

Players have proven themselves more than willing to sacrifice large portions of their vast wealth in order to keep the NBA going. Something that their ‘owners' cannot say.

I respect them for that.

But don't ask me to pity them; after all, it is - on average - a league of millionaires.