Getty LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers.
After defeating Tyron Woodley at UFC Fight Night 178, Colby Covington made some headlines by calling out Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James. Covington is an open supporter of President Donald Trump while LeBron is very much the opposite. The NBA superstar is one of the most political athletes around so he’s become a target for many.
Covington received some backlash for calling out LeBron but he doubled down on his criticism and even brought up Delonte West. The tweet does contain NSFW language.
LOL at the snowflakes that believe @KingJames could even last 10 seconds with me! If that coward had the balls or the ability to kick anyone’s ass, Delonte West would’ve lost his teeth long before his meth habit!
The comments about West are based on unconfirmed rumors that he had an affair with LeBron’s mother. Everything is alleged but the rumor has become something that LeBron detractors use against him. A fight between LeBron and Covington would certainly be interesting. The Lakers star has a massive size advantage over the welterweight but obviously he doesn’t have the proper training. Clearly, this fight will never happen but it would be great TV.
Kevin Durant & Austin Rivers Came to LeBron’s Defense
What likely caused Covington to double down on his LeBron criticism is the fact that a number of NBA players went after him.
Kevin Durant, Austin Rivers, and Michael Carter-Williams respond to Colby Covington calling out LeBron James after his UFC fight 👀
Commenting on an Instagram post, Kevin Durant, Austin Rivers and Michael Carter-Williams all took shots at the fighter. Covington isn’t going to back down anytime soon but NBA players probably won’t either. LeBron has been the biggest catalyst for a more political sports landscape. While there are people who aren’t happy about the merging between politics and sports, it’s not going away. This probably isn’t the last time that Covington goes after LeBron.
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LeBron May Have Taken a Shot at Covington
After Sunday’s win over the Denver Nuggets, LeBron made some strong comments that were perceived to be about Anthony Davis detractors. However, it might be a little more layered than that.
“You put that pressure on yourself when you don’t really care about what other people think,” LeBron said. “Because what other people think doesn’t really matter because they don’t understand. Anybody can talk from outside. But if they got into the ring, if they got into the arena, probably 10 times out of 10, they s— their pants.”
It’s very interesting that LeBron specifically mentioned “the ring,” as in the venue fighters fight in. That’s more than likely a little bit of a dig at Covington. There seems to be a feud developing between the two men. LeBron is a global superstar so he’s not going anywhere while Covington is coming off one of his most impressive wins.
LeBron has made it very clear in the past that he’s not going to “stick to sports.” He’s always been very political that’s not stopping anytime soon. That means he’s going to have a lot of critics. Being a huge superstar paints a giant target on your back but LeBron has got to be used to it at this point.
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