lebron james
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LeBron James is not pleased with the Los Angeles Lakers’ current struggles, stating that his son Bronny James can play for them “right now.”
The Los Angeles Lakers are on a concerning losing streak, and the frustration that their superstar LeBron James is feeling has prompted him to make a bold claim that his son Bronny, a freshman at the University of Southern California, could actually step in and help the team out immediately.
According to Claire De Lune of the Guardian, the 21-year veteran was not in a great mood after the Lakers lost 127-113 to the Memphis Grizzlies Friday (Jan. 5). When asked about the effects of winning the inaugural in-season tournament on the streak by a reporter, James bluntly responded, “I’m not thinking that far back in the past. It was just two games. We suck right now.” When teammate Austin Reaves asked him about Bronny’s game at USC the following day and if he’d be starting, LeBron stated it was time before adding, “he could play for us right now. Easy. EASY.”
Bronny James recently made his collegiate basketball debut over four months after suffering an episode of cardiac arrest last July. While playing limited minutes in seven games, the 19-year-old was averaging 6.7 points, 2.3 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.3 steals in 17.1 minutes.
When queried by the press before their most recent game against Stanford University, USC head coach Andy Enfield said of Bronny’s progress: “He’s a freshman, [and] this was his sixth game. He’s developing as a player and it’s nice to see and nice to watch. He’s a typical freshman but he had a little disadvantage over most freshmen where he was out for five months and had to come back in midseason. It’s very hard to do.”
LeBron has expressed wanting to play with Bronny as well as his brother Bryce in the NBA before he retires, even having the idea incorporated into a Beats by Dre commercial. Presently, a mock draft for 2024 conducted by CBS Sports analyst Kyle Boone has Bronny’s teammate, freshman point guard Isaiah Collier as the top pick. The consensus is that Bronny would be a solid player in the league, just not right away. Meanwhile, LeBron is putting up a terrific season at age 39, averaging 25.2 points, 7.3 rebounds and 7.4 assists per game.
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The man behind a lot of LeBron James’ success is under fire. His business manager Maverick Carter has admitted to illegally betting on NBA games.
The Washington Post is exclusively reporting that the American businessman would regularly gamble money on National Basketball Games via an illegal bookie Wayne Nix. Back in 2021 Nix was investigated by a federal task force for running a very profitable offshore bookmaking business. According to federal law enforcement records reviewed by The Washington Post Maverick Carter admitted to making bets with Nix’s company. The paperwork shows that he laid money down 20 times on both football and basketball games; with bets starting at $5,000.00 upwards to $10,000.00.
A spokesperson for both Carter and LeBron James confirmed that federal agents did interview Maverick about the investigation into Wayne Nix. “In 2021 and before 38 states and the District of Columbia legalized sports betting, Maverick Carter was interviewed a single time by federal law enforcement regarding their investigation into Wayne Nix,” Adam Mendelsohn said in a statement. “Mr. Carter was not the target of the investigation, cooperated, was never charged, and never contacted again on the matter.”
NBA policy forbids players, coaches and league staff to gamble on games but does not enforce this rule on business managers or sports agents. Others noted figures who reportedly place bets with Wayne Nix include Scottie Pippen. The six time champion shared that he considered Nix a “good friend” and played golf with him on several occasions. According to Sports Illustrated Wayne Nix is a former minor league baseball pitcher. He has pled guilty one count of conspiracy and one count of falsifying a tax return and is awaiting sentencing.
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Rashad McCants, a former first-round NBA draft selection, is now enjoying a second career as a broadcaster who talks basketball and other matters. A clip of McCants is now going wide after the North Carolina native said that he believes Kevin Durant will go down as a better basketball player than LeBron James when it’s all said and done.
The statement in question came courtesy of the No Chill with Gilbert Arenas podcast with Rashad McCants comparing the career tracks of Kevin Durant, who turned 35 this past September, and LeBron James, who will be 39 this December.
In McCants’ view, “real hooper” to use his words would place KD over King James when it comes down to it. Both are definitely world-class basketball players with James having a championship advantage with four rings compared to Durant’s two rings. James is also the leading scorer of all-time in the NBA and showing no signs of slowing down as he leads the Los Angeles Lakers. Durant, currently playing for the Phoenix Suns, is still an explosive player capable of taking games as anyone else in the league.
Arenas didn’t push back heavily on McCants’ statement but did say something interesting about the NBA and the whispers some observers have shared that the league promotes different teams based on their market. Arenas said that the NBA thrives and makes more money when the Boston Celtics, Chicago Bulls, and Los Angeles Lakers are powerhouses.
There has to be more to this conversation as the clip never offers any manner of closure or following thoughts from Rashad McCants but on X, formerly known as Twitter, the segment of users known as NBA Twitter has plenty to say.
Also, to all the accounts trying to go viral off the clip, why not give those views to Arenas so he can keep feasting? That’s nasty work. We’ve added the clip of Arenas’ account below to help.
Check out the reactions below.
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Photo: Houston Chronicle/Hearst Newspapers via Getty Images / Getty
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Source: Tasos Katopodis / Getty / Magic Johnson
The Billionaires Boys Club for Black notable athletes just got its fourth member, and it’s none other than Magic Johnson.
According to the financial bible, Forbes, Magic Johnson is now a billionaire. The NBA champion and Pro Basketball Hall-of-Famer reached the wealth milestone thanks to a combination of all of his lucrative investments in “professional sports teams, movie theaters, Starbucks cafes, and a health insurance provider,” according to the website.
Johnson becoming a billionaire makes him only the fourth professional athlete to do so, joining his buddy Michael Jordan, LeBron James, and Tiger Woods.
Forbes reports Johnson’s minority stake in the Washington Commanders after billionaire Josh Harris’ $6.05 billion purchase of the team in May, stakes in the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks, MLB’s Los Angeles Dodgers, and the MLS’ LAFC, plus other major investments pushed his net worth to $1.2 billion.
While Johnson’s investments in sports franchises, Starbucks, and Loews get all of the attention, Forbes points to his investment in Iowa-based life insurance company EquiTrust as the one that makes up the most significant portion of his net worth.
Per Forbes:
Forbes now estimates his net worth to be $1.2 billion—the result of his stakes in those teams, and major investments in a slate of industries, including a 60% stake in Iowa-based life insurance company EquiTrust he purchased in 2015.
EquiTrust makes up the largest portion of Johnson’s personal net worth—since the purchase, the Iowa-based company’s assets have skyrocketed from $16 billion to $26 billion, with annual revenues of roughly $2.6 billion.
Magic Johnson Could Have Been A “Trillionaire” Already
While Johnson has nothing to be upset about regarding his net worth, he could have already been a trillionaire if he had made one investment back in his playing days, and that’s taking Nike’s offer of stock options instead of the cash with Converse.
According to the numbers, Johnson missed out on $5.2 billion.
Still, being worth $1.2 billion is nothing to sneeze at. Congrats to the Magic man on the accomplishment.
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LeBron James continues to ball off the court. He recently starred in a Louis Vuitton campaign and pulled up to the season opener wearing over $28K in LV.
High Snobiety is reporting that the Los Angeles Laker is the face of a new advertising rollout by the French brand. The label has leased several high profile out of home billboard advertisements throughout New York City. First appearing on Tuesday, October 24 the visual captures the National Basketball League legend wearing a black suit, white dress shirt and black tie accompanied by a gold colored brooch. Over his shoulder he is carrying the Louis Vuitton Speedy Bag in red.
The timing for the advertisements seems to be purposeful as the 2023-2024 season starts this week. As spotted on TMZ LeBron James arrived to Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado wearing some pieces from the 2024 spring summer menswear collection. The outfit included a digitized Damoflage jacket, Super Vision sunglasses, a green Speedy Bandouliere 40 bag used to go over the shoulder, Checker Derby shoes and a small hard trunk case.
LeBron James is in great company when it comes to the talent Pharrell Williams has recruited to represent the luxury apparel goods label since replacing the late great Virgil Abloh. Earlier this year Rihanna starred in a separate campaign that also focused on the iconic Speedy Bag. You can watch the Louis Vuitton Spring Summer 2024 runway show here.
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As Israel is in the midst of conflict with the terrorist group Hamas in the Gaza region, LeBron James expressed support via social media which drew a lot of mixed reactions and plenty of disapproval.On Wednesday night (October 11), LeBron James posted a statement to X, formerly known as Twitter, addressing the current turmoil in Israel after the southern region including the Gaza Strip suffered an attack from members of the militant Hamas organization. James began, “The devastation in Israel is tragic and unacceptable.”
“The murder and violence against innocent people by Hamas is terrorism,” the post continued. “The SpringHill Company family sends our deepest condolences to Israel and the Jewish community. We pray for peace in the region and reiterate our continued commitment to fight hate in all its forms. We all must work to ensure this tragedy does not spread even more hate, racism, and antisemitism.” The statement was also co-signed by James’ business partner, Maverick Carter.
The Los Angeles Lakers forward’s statement is one of a series of releases by noted celebrities who have expressed similar sentiments about the conflict in the region which is now in its fifth day after Hamas members killed and kidnapped Israelis in the region in a shock attack over the weekend.
To date, Over 1,200 Israelis have reportedly been killed with close to 2,700 injured while in Gaza, it is estimated that 900 Palestinians have been killed along with 5,000 that were injured. It has increased divisions between those who believe the Israeli government to be too brutal in attacking innocent Palestinians in Gaza, and those who try to conflate the support of the Palestinian people with the support of Hamas.
James’ statement was met with dismay by quite a few users on X, who feel he made that statement to placate right-wing individuals. Others flatly accused him of “selling out” by not even mentioning the Palestinian people in the statement.
And tangentially, of course, many took the opportunity to crack jokes against LeBron James, saying he will never be a better player than Chicago Bulls guard and NBA Hall of Famer Michael Jordan.
Keep scrolling to see the reactions from X below.
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1. Kordeli
This X user simply said, “NO LEBRON NOOOO” in response to the statement.
2. Captain MB
A meme featuring Lightning McQueen from “Cars” spinning out of control comes into play to express this user’s disappointment.
4. A Bro Next Door
A meme satirizing LeBron’s penchant for being pictured reading a book.
5. Kanki
One user replied to James with a tweet commenting on the way Palestinians are depicted as opposed to Israeli when violence comes into play.
6. Maor Melikson
This user was one of the lone voices fully supporting LeBron’s statement – with one caveat.
7. StaticMMIV
This X user queried out loud if celebrities were to be censured if they didn’t put out a statement of support for Israel.
8. Blue_999
A comparison of LeBron James losing his hair to the land lost by Palestinians since 1948 in Israel.
9. Mr.
“See what the man you pretend to read says and you didn’t go beyond the first page just for the sake of photographing!”, this user wrote.
LeBron James is the latest star to enjoy a Weekends With Adele show at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, and the basketball superstar took to Instagram on Sunday (Oct. 1) to gush over the “Easy on Me” singer’s performance. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news “You’re ABSOLUTELY […]
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Bronny James’ recent cardiac arrest has been diagnosed. The cause is being linked to a congenital heart defect.
As spotted on ESPN the son of LeBron James has been evaluated by medical professionals. According to a family spokesperson he paid a visit to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles and had separate follow-up appointments at the Mayo Clinic and the Atlantic Health-Morristown Medical Center in New Jersey. On Friday, August 25 the representative released a statement revealing their findings. “It is an anatomically and functionally significant Congenital Heart Defect which can and will be treated,” said Stephanie Rosa of the LeBron James Family Foundation. “We are very confident in Bronny’s full recovery and return to basketball in the very near future. We will continue to provide updates to media and respectfully reiterate the family’s request for privacy.”
According to the National Heart, Lung & Blood Institute congenital heart defects are “problems with the heart’s structure that are present at birth. They may change the normal flow of blood through the heart. Congenital heart defects are the most common type of birth defect, occurring in about one percent of live births in the United States.” The 18-year-old USC talent suffered the cardiac arrest on Monday, July 24. He was treated for three days at a local medical facility. The following evening he was spotted enjoying dinner with his family at a restaurant in Santa Monica.
Bronny James did not join his USC teammates during a tour of Europe earlier this month.
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LeBron James thrilled his legion of fans and put haters on notice when he announced at the ESPY Awards last week that he will return to the Los Angeles Lakers for his 21st NBA season. LeBron James has worn the number 6 but with the league retiring the number after the passing of NBA legend Bill Russell, King James will switch back to 23 out of respect.
News of the jersey number switch for LeBron James came via a report from ESPN that over the weekend, Rich Paul, James’ agent, and member of his inner circle, shared that his client will be donning the new number on the back of his jersey this coming season.
“It’s LeBron’s decision,” Paul told ESPN. “He chose to out of respect for Bill Russell.”
Russell, who brought championship glory to the Boston Celtics many times over, died last year at 88. The NBA decided to retire Russell’s No. 6 jersey number league-wide, which was the first that that has ever happened. If a current NBA player donned the No. 6, they could keep the number if they so choose.
As the outlet suggests, jersey sales with James’ number will be in high demand as his No. 6 replica jersey was a hot seller last year. Fans can expect to be on a long list of potential owners of a No. 23 LeBron James jersey when the season launches this fall.
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LeBron James, in the eyes of many, will go down as one of the best basketball players to ever lace them up and the accolades are numerous. Still, King James cast doubt if he’d return to the court for his 21st NBA season but that chatter was silenced at this year’s ESPYS Award ceremony.
LeBron James, 38, received the Best Record-Breaking Performance ESPY award Wednesday night (July 12) but before he went to deliver his moving acceptance speech, James’ wife, Savannah James introduced her husband to the Dolby Theatre crowd in Los Angeles in humorous fashion. Mrs. James was flanked by their three children, sons Bronny and Bryce, and daughter Zhuri.
James showed all of the poise of a veteran as he took the stage and thanked his supporters while taking note of his long list of detractors. In his speech, James told the crowd that his devotion to the game is still strong as it ever was and despite his advanced age, he still has a lot left to give. And it was in this speech that the kid from Akron, Ohio let the world know that he was running it back.
“I don’t care how many more points I score or what I can or cannot do on the floor,” James said. “The real question for me is, ‘Can I play without cheating this game?’ The day I can’t give everything on the floor is the day I’ll be done. Lucky for you guys, that day is not today.”
Among the attendees were some of James’ former teammates such as Dwyane Wade, Carmelo Anthony, and others. James’ speech was met with approving nods and applause from the crowd, and the news certainly delighted Lakers Nation who all assumed that after the team was swept by the Denver Nuggets in this year’s Western Conference playoffs, James would retire.
On Twitter, LeBron James saw his name trending with people celebrating the news along with some requisite hate, something James mentioned in his speech. We’ve got reactions from all sides below.
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