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Exclusive: How LeBron 'Buys' Dez As A Worldwide Icon

By Mike Fisher | @fishsports

LONDON (105.3 THE FAN) -- Dez Bryant is on-record as saying one of the reasons he is associating himself with Jay-Z's sports marketing firm is a desire to reach "icon" status.

And 105.3 The Fan has exclusive evidence that such a movement is growing.

A source close to Bryant tells me that Dez's "Throw Up The X" marketing experts are working on creating Dallas Mavericks jerseys emblazoned with "BRYANT 88" on them.

It's not clear how the NFL, the NBA or Jay-Z will be involved in this push.

But I know who has succumbed to the push: none other than LeBron James.

Sources tell me that even though the jerseys have yet to be produced, there is an order already on the books, from Cleveland Cavaliers superstar James, who happens to be a Cowboys fan -- and the possessor of the sort of iconic status Dez desires.

Washington Redskins v Dallas Cowboys
(Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

Already this week, Bryant has been flattered by London children "throwing up the X" at him, noting that's a sign "we're taking this nation-wide."

Actually, this would be "world-wide." But LeBron James apparently knows exactly what Dez means.

(©2014 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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