Nancy Lieberman helped Kevin Durant meet Muhammad Ali after discovering that the boxing legend was just as interested in meeting him. According to Lieberman, Durant later described the visit as the greatest day of his life.

Speaking on the All the Smoke podcast, Lieberman recalled visiting Ali at his home in Phoenix and asking a simple question. At that time, Lieberman was working on Oklahoma City Thunder television broadcasts, which gave her an inside connection to Durant. When Ali told her that they hadn’t met, she saw an opportunity to arrange something special.

“I said, ‘Who’s your favorite player in the NBA?’ And he goes, ‘Kevin Durant.’ You know, he was talking very low. ‘You like Kevin Durant? I do the TV for them. You’ve never met him?’ He goes, ‘I’ve never met Kevin Durant.'”

“So fast forward to the next day, I’m in OKC. Now, OKC has rules. You can’t mix and mingle. You know, it was hard for me a little bit because I’m like, I’m Nancy Lieberman. I’m friends with these guys, but I have to be conscientious of who I’m working for. And they’re amazing.

“So you have to be in this little taped-off area. And I’m like, ‘Kevin, Kevin.’ And he looks at me. I said, ‘Don’t look at me.’ I said, ‘Kevin, do you know Muhammad Ali? Do you like Muhammad Ali?’ He goes, ‘Love him.’ And I’m, like, looking the other way just so I don’t lose my job.

“And I said, ‘I was with him last night. He’s my friend. I was at the house in Phoenix.’ He goes, ‘You know Muhammad Ali?’ I go, ‘He’s my family.’ I said, ‘Kevin, he wants to meet you.’ He goes, ‘Muhammad Ali wants to meet me?'”

“I said, ‘If you’ll entrust me with your phone number.’ And I started scribbling his cell. I said, ‘I’m going to give it to Lonnie Ali. You guys can talk, and I’ll back out gracefully. And thank you for trusting me.’ And as I got ready to walk away, I went, ‘Do not bring an entourage.'”

“He goes, because we were playing them, like, a week later. And after shootaround, he went, Ubered over, and he’s sending me pictures of him and Ali from the house. He goes, ‘Greatest day of my life.’ And even, like, when I see Kevin now, he’s like, ‘You know, thank you.’ And I’m like, ‘No, thank you for taking time to be with him.'”

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by ALL THE SMOKE (@allthesmoke)

Lieberman had already built a pretty remarkable basketball career herself. Nicknamed Lady Magic, the Hall of Famer won an Olympic silver medal in 1976, led Old Dominion to consecutive national championships in 1979 and 1980, and later became a WNBA player and coach. Her career also included coaching the Texas Legends in the NBA’s developmental league.

Her relationship with Ali was deeply personal. In a previous interview, Lieberman said that their friendship began in December 1979 during her senior year at Old Dominion. She had idolized him growing up, just like millions of fans worldwide, and he became a mentor whose advice and encouragement stayed with her throughout her career. Their bond lasted decades, including visits to his Phoenix home later in his life.

But getting them to meet wasn’t as easy as expected. Getting that conversation started did require some thought and maneuvering. Lieberman recalled the Thunder’s rules against interactions with players and said that she was standing in a taped-off area when she called Durant over.

She joked about looking away during the exchange because she did not want to jeopardize her job. And once Durant got the information about Ali, he was quite firm on meeting him, and eventually the two legends met at Ali’s house in Phoenix.

The meeting clearly stayed with Durant. Lieberman said he still thanks her when they see each other, although she feels the gratitude should go both ways.

That response just captured what made the introduction so meaningful to her. She knew how much Ali meant to Durant, but she also heard Ali name him as his favorite player. By connecting them, Lieberman gave both men a chance to spend time with someone whose talent they admired.