Source: Meg Oliphant / Getty
is never afraid to speak his mind.
Sitting down on another platform is a rarity for the 40-year-old, but he switched things up today when he appeared on ESPN’s
The Pat McAfee Show.
Now, ESPN has several shows he could have hopped on, with its premiere program being
First Take. But James made it clear that his ongoing beef with
Stephen A. Smith made that impossible. So, he continued to roast him over his handling of the
heated sideline conversation they had weeks ago over
Bronny James.
Love 97.9 The Beat? Get more! Join the 97.9 The Beat Newsletter
We care about your data. See our privacy policy.
“He’s on a Taylor Swift tour run right now. It started off with ‘I didn’t wanna address it, but since the video came out I have to,’” James begins.
James explains that Smith missed the entire point of their disagreement about Bronny’s play because he sees nothing wrong with critiquing any athlete’s on-court ability.
“Never would I not allow people to criticize players about what they do on the court. That is your job. That’s all part of the game. But when you get personal with it it’s my job to not only protect my damn household but protect the players,” James says before imagining the pundit’s reaction to the clip. “He’s going to be smiling from ear to ear when he hears me talking about him. He’s gonna get home and get some ice ream out of the f-cking freezer and sit in his chair in tighty whiteys on the couch. Like, dude, relax.”
However, Smith wasn’t the only topic of conversation; James also talked about this relationship with
Michael Jordan and the late great
Kobe Bryant.
James says he didn’t have much of a relationship with Bryant until he retired, when King James became a
Los Angeles Laker. He expects the same shift with Jordan because he’s a “ruthless competitor.”
“Until I’m done and he doesn’t have to look at me run up and down the court wearing the number 23 and every time my name is mentioned it’s mentioned with his, he’s like ‘I don’t wanna f-cking talk to you,’” James jokes.
In the
one-hour conversation, the four-time NBA champ also quipped about the LeBron Whispiere, otherwise known as journalist
Brian Windhorst, saying, “This guy says he’s my best f-cking friend. These guys are just weird.”
See how social media is reacting to James’ interview below.
