ebola. what is wrong with you was the mentality. that's when i think everybody here changed. >> got to go, ben. awe t >> ben ferguson. thank you. have a good weekend. we'll be watching. that's it for us tonight. i'm don lemon. see you back here monday night. stay with cnn throughout the weekend. live coverage of the ebola coverage." "unguarded" with rachel nichols starts now. >> tonight on "unguard" with rachel nichols. lebron james opens up abut his drastic weight loss. being a celebrity father. and what made him decide to to leave a warm paradise and return to his roots in the rust belt. >> why would he leave sunny, florida, to go back to the cold of ohio. >> tennis superstar, serena williams, discusses just how sunny stayed so good for so long. >> train for, for 30-something years is it is definitely not

easy. a choice. you choose to do it or you don't. welcome to "unguarded." the former miami house of superstar lebron james went on the market recently. and the $17 million listing describes an elevator, infinity pool, personal theater and a yacht dock. but it is not the details that have so man buzzing. it's that the house is for sale at all. further confirmation that lebron is really, truly, back in ohio to stay. now for those who don't understand why you would ever leave the house with a yacht dock, well next friday night, cnn will air the documentary "more than a game. "the movie chronicles james' high school years and further captures his love affair with the place he group. we speck to him about that and everything else. we spoke to him about that and everything else. ♪ ♪

we are about to air the documentary "more than a game" here on cnn. a pretty amaze look at you in high school. all this great footage of you you were just on the cusp of what you are today. what is it like for you to look at the individuvideo right now. >> super, super diet then. >> scrawny, you were never little by the way. you were not as built as you are now. >> to look at tight day. just, wow, like -- i would never want any, no kids to have to go through what we as a group went through. on a national scale. flying to los angeles for basketball games. north carolina. playing in tournaments all over. you know, and it never got to us. >> people who know you only now as the famous basketball player, what's the thing they're going to learn the most about you from watching the documentary. >> say he is a lil' goyal guy,

friends. city. to people that i care for. understand that i dent on't do i do just because of, you know, i got responsibility, very high. even when i was a teenager. >> give insight why you returned to the area of cleveland. >> mate bit may be. for the people who don't quite know. why would he leave sunny florida to go back to the cold of ohio. the documentary will give you some insight. ♪ ♪ >> i love you. i'm back. >> did you know this was going to happen? >> no, i didn't. i had dreams about going back home. i thought elt would happen a lot later on in my career. going back and kind of, you know, having a couple more years left on my career and finish it off that way. i didn't think it would happen this soon. >> there is some damage from the time you left before. the fans burning your jersey you

seem to repair that over the years before you left miami. but that letter from dan gilbert was what stuck with a lot of people. for people who don't remember at the time, the cav lerz owner wrote about your cowardly betrayal and shocking act of disloyalty. what were the hard parts getting past that for you and your family? >> well, ultimately in order for me to make a decision to come back. i needed to sit down with dan, face to face, man-to-man. >> he came done to visit you in miami during free agency period he said at that point you two hadn't spoken in four years. of what was that conversation like? >> a straightforward conversation. no beating around the bush. he basically said, no matter what decision you make he wanted to clear the air. so where we can, see each other in public or see each other wherever. i am competing against you. we can always shake each other's hand hand look at the fun times that we had in cleveland while we were together instead of focusing on the one night that kind of, you know --

[ indiscernible ] >> you have already ben putting in a lot of work to try to make this seas this's son successful. been on a strict diet. you look lighter. how much did you lose the? >> lost a few points. i haven't been in this weight class. >> give me a ballpark? >> in the 250ish range. you know, a lot lighter i have been playing at the last few years. but i feel good. >> the diet was strict. right? >> strict. 67 day ttz. >> what did you eat or not eat? >> tell you what i couldn't have. no carbs, no sugar, no dairy, no refined sugar, no nothing. meat, fish, veggies, fruit. >> what was the hardest thing to give up? >> it was either pancakes or chocolate chip cookies and ice cream. >> did you go to bed dreaming abut pancakes you couldn't have? >> all the time. had the cookie monster chase me

a few times in my dreams. >> are you quicker on the court? >> i a i am. not such a good thing for the competition. >> i love the idea of lebron being chased by the cookie monster. if the cavaliers win an nba title this season. guessing who ever designed that diet is getting a ring. stick around after the break. lebron discusses why he is not afraid to take a stand on social issues including eat venthe eve ferguson, missouri. >> having two boys of my own. just one day my kids left home to go anywhere, you expect your kids to return.

i'm rachel nichols welcome back to "unguard." athletes and social politics have a mixed history, some like muhammad ali and billie jean king embraced celebrity to push for change. others like michael jordan refused to address anything that would make him unpopular with those buying his sneakers. we have been talking to lebron james who did aidolize jordan a

a kid. as you will see here, when it comes to speaking up on current events. lebron is his own man. this has the not been a great year for nba owners in general, donald sterling forcinged out of the league, extreme leap racist comments. now the atlanta hawks owner is selling his team. you spoke out on the sterling issue and you were also outspoken on trayvon martin. how is your willingness to take leadership role on those things changed as you have gotten older? >> for me, if i feel passionate about it and i feel like something need to be said or something need to be done. i will voice my opinion. i will speak with knowledge. educate myself first before i dive into a situation. >> incidents in ferguson, missouri, in the last few months. talking specifics of the situation it did spark the national conversation on the way america sees young black men. what do you think about where we are right now? >> me having two young boys of my own.

just one day, my kids left home to go anywhere. you expect your kids to return. you expect your kids to return home. unless they're off to college. >> right. >> i couldn't imagine them not returning home because of some one else's, i don't know, just not thinking, or, or, cowardice act or whatever the case might be. we know racism is still alive. and you know, the only thing that i can do, as a role model, i feel look i am a leader. and society its just to teach my kids and teach the people that is following me what the right way is. >> you are a big football fan. your boys love football. >> yes, they do. >> you had i imagine every parent in america had over the last month. the ray rice video comes out. you got to talk to your kids about it, right. >> left it simple as this. never put your hand on a woman. never put your hand on a -- your classmate. that is a female. it's not allowed. not condoned in this house and

shouldn't be condoned in this world. your dad should never put his hand on your mother. when i was born. that was a rule that was written. from day one it's not something that anyone should condone. and a cowardly act. >> you have talked about how important being a dad is to you. you have been open about the fact that that is partly because you didn't know your father growing up. you wanted to do the opposite. i was pretty surprised to see, your instagram post from earlier this year. you basically wrote a note to your dad. you said, you know what i don't know you. i have no idea who you are. because of you is part of the reason i am who i am today. the fuel that i use you not being there is part of the roone i grew up to become who i am. what made you decide to. i don't know. i think it is the truth. my whole life growing up. i always said "why me? ?" why, why didn't my dad want to be around? i feel like i am a pretty cool kid. a good kid. why wouldn't he want to be around for me. as the i got older and older and

had my own family. i started to think, you know, the reason he wasn't there is the reason why i became so strong mentally. so loving to my mother. and, and, i am who i am today because he wasn't there. because i use it as motivation. everything that i have gained, he has a role in it. because i used it. >> have you fr thougever though have gotten older, what if? should i ex-mrrplore a relation with him? the what if, has popped into my head. i think i am good where i am. >> it does seem he is doing just fine. very smart and personal stuff there. and we have got a lot more with lebron james coming up. including how he has dealt with criticism that he has changed stins since he got rich and famous. later in the show, serena williams looked back on her more than 20 years in the spotlight.

first our nikon unguarded moment of the week. an unlikely hero burst on to the baseball scene last night. ishikawa, blalsted this walkoff three run homer. giants beat the cardinals, 6-3, and are now on to their third world series in five years. what about it, chicago? wow. 31 years old. he is in the minor leagues earlier this season. his career might be done. clearly not. the world series starts tuesday.

welcome back.

i'm rachel nichols. we've been talking to one of the world's most famous athletes. lebron james. lebron's well documented journey from projects of akron, ohio to globetrotting superstar hasn't always been smooth. he told me that while it has been a fantastic ride, he has met people along the way who haven't necessarily been happy for him. you have also talked about an emotional subject. the idea when athletes, are entertainers, make it the people around them aren't necessarily as happy for them. a lot of you have changed. >> i have always had a problem with people sag you have changed over the years. and i would hope that you have changed for the better. and, and i felt look i was changing for the better the my problem was, i would always say back to them, well you are the one with the issue because you have not changed you are still in the same position you were in, four, five years ago. so, it happens in our society a lot. and we would rather see, in the

black community we would rather people stay at the same bottomless level than we are than see some one grow apart if that makes sense. stay together and both struggle. than one of us making it and us being happy for that person that made it. >> this is a big enough issue for you that you are producing a television series. about it. called survivor's remorse. >> i just want to thank my family. >> everything is in play when you become famous. >> we fell from the titanic and landed in a lifeboat. i feel guilty. >> a fiction that story, based on a lot of the true to life conflicts that athletes have. >> now for kids let me put that out there. look right into the camera. consider, it is not suitable for kids. parents put your kid to bed before survivor's remorse comes on television. it shows the the athletes and people in general that become successful have to deal with it every single day.

from their family to people that, that think they're their family we all have that cousin that, that, we have never seen before, that all of a sudden comes out when you become successful. hey, remember me? your mom and used to talk, brother, back in the day. i don't know, you don't remember. listen here. >> yeah. >> with everything you got ahead of yourself. basketball, new baby on the way, going to raise your family in ohio. a word or two that comes to mind as you think about what is ahead? >> wow, that its a great question. one word to describe what is ahead, is faith. i have faith in myself, faithen my family. faith in my community. and, you know, ohio, the state of ohio. i have a huge responsibility to myself to understhaand me playi the guam of basketball is bigger than dribbling, dunking, making a shot. the word faith is nument weber

thing i can use for the very near future. >> it is going to be an interesting season indeed. remember, you can catch lebron's documentary "more than a game" on this network, next friday night. catch 18-time grand slam champion serena williams right after this break. she is now in some extremely lofty company and she tells us how surreal that is. >> doesn't seem right, chrissy, serena. i can officially be there. ♪

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>> i'm rachel nichols welcome back to unguarded. this summer serena williams found herself in an extremely unfamiliar position. she struggled at the grand slam. she was fening off rumors of

drug use after appearing disoriented durl a wimbledon doubles match. at 32 she heard opening questioning on whether sunny should retire. last month when things looked the most grim, williams did what sunny has done over and over in her career. she came up bigger than ever. winning the u.s. open. now as the wta tour prepares for its season ending championships we sit done to discuss the year that was. ♪ i got the eye of the tiger ♪ fire dancing through the fire ♪ ♪ because i am the champion and you're going to see hear me roar ♪ [ cheers and applause ] >> congratulations you. have now had the craziest year in tennis ever. i mean how high have the high been for you and how low the lows? >> definitely super-crazy year. definitely the highest, great, this is the greatest, i mean getting the 18, the open.

♪ ♪ [ cheers and applause ] i think it was fitting. actually. and the lows, just, broke through all of them. that's what really helped out. >> the u.s. open was your 18th cat rear grand slam win. ties you with chris everett and martina navratilova. >> it just doesn't seem right, chris, mar tina, serena. oh, my goodness, i can officially be there now. it feels great. because you hear these names, growing up, and you really think that, one day, i said, oh, you know, serena, you don't think about yourself like that. you think i am going to work hard do the best i can. then you start chasing titles. start chasing legends. just a great feeling. ♪ ♪ >> i don't want to skimp on how impressive 18 is. the record is 22. grand slams. career grand slams, steffi graf, how hard are you going to fight? >> going to be hard. steffi was a great player and champion. >> i know you. already thinking about. >> i am thinking 19, not 22.

you know me, i have already thought, even on the court. i thought, 19. but not 22. >> out on the court, winning 1, thinking 19. >> once it was over. you know. i did think i got to do 19 now. but for the most part. i don't think about 22. it seems so far away. really does. >> steffi repitired at 30 years old you. are turning 33 end of this month. what do you think it as it but you? you are now the oldest player to ever hold the number one ranking that so many other greats have had to quit? >> i think tennis before was a sport where you thought you had to stop early. and young. and now, more traditional people are playing until they're 35. i think the mental aspect of being able to come in. every day, work hard, practice, train, train, train, for 30-something years is definitely not easy. a choice. choose to do it or you don't. >> you and i met when you were 17 years old. can't believe i am asking you

this question. anything your older self would tell your younger self back then? >> no, that's cheating. unf unfair to give hints. i really believe that you have to learn things in life. you have to, sometimes, you know, make great decisions or make bad decisions. or you have to do it, or else you will never have sxt peer ye -- have the experience, and never have the opportunity to tell my younger self what to do. >> you have never taken yourself or any of this too seriously? >> no. always joking. always making you laugh. i always fry to see the lighter side of things, rather than the darker side. if you don't. i think you would go crazy. for me that's how i stay, you know, stable. >> your sister had a great, i thought get earlier this year. she said we try to rush our tennis players off the stage too early. people are always asking me when i am going to retire. people have been asking her that since she was 25 years old do. you feel that? >> that is true. that is a great way to put it.

that is absolutely true. we never want to see, you know, myself out of the game yet, or we dent want to see roger out of the game. venus. we don't want to be rushed out. >> how long do you want to stick around for? >> i don't know. taking it year by year. championship by championship. title by title. >> at least until 19, right. >> at the very least. ♪ i am a champion and you're going to hear me roar ♪ >> i have a feeling she is going to want to keep going after 19. certainly looking for ward to watching and finding out. all right, that is going to do it for tonight's show. but you can follow me on twitter and facebook are on the web. although we are off next friday night. we'll be right back here the week after that for more "unguarded" where the end of the game is just the start of the story. good night.

i'm told you are a man who can help me? some in the 1850s my great, great, great grandfather, emigrated to south america. was reported to die here. but might have been a seeker of utopian dreams. my aunt told stories. he was into arms struggling, but no i didn't.