Getty Images LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers.
Clay Travis has been an outspoken opponent of LeBron James and the Outkick founder continued his attack on the Los Angeles Lakers star on Monday.
Travis has taken exception to James not speaking out against China, saying his business interests — primarily sneakers and movies — have taken priority over what he views as the right thing. Travis ripped James on his Periscope show on Monday, saying that he is “shutting up and dribbling” for China — the opposite of what he’s promised to do when it comes to social justice issues.
“The worst among of these players, I believe, is LeBron James because the profit-based decision-making of his choices is so readily apparent,” Travis said. “LeBron is shutting up and dribbling for China, while refusing to do so in the United States, and even worse, saying he won’t ever shut up and dribble. But he’s doing just that for China so that Space Jam 2 is allowed to be on in Beijing theaters. Because if LeBron James came out and said, ‘I’m opposed to genocide. I support democracy in China. I support freedom of religion and freedom of speech,’ China would pull his movie out of theaters and his Nikes out of stores. That would cost LeBron James money.
“The big lie LeBron James is selling is that he’s in some way the person who is brave and honest, when in reality, he’s doing whatever makes him the most money. He’s a hypocrite.”
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LeBron James Has Made Push for Change
James and the NBA as a whole were highly-criticized for comments on China following former Rockets general manager Daryl Morey tweeting support for the pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong.
“I think when we all sit back and learn from the situation that happened, understand that what you could tweet or could say (could affect people),” James said in 2019. “We all talk about this freedom of speech. Yes, we all do have freedom of speech, but at times there are ramifications for the negative that can happen when you’re not thinking about others, and you’re only thinking about yourself.
“I don’t want to get into a word or sentence feud with Daryl Morey, but I believe he wasn’t educated on the situation at hand, and he spoke, and so many people could have been harmed, not only financially, but physically. Emotionally. Spiritually. So just be careful what we tweet and what we say, and what we do. Even though yes, we do have freedom of speech, but there can be a lot of negative that comes with that too.”
What has put James in the crosshairs of people like Travis is that he’s said that he won’t just shut up and dribble over social injustice. And in his defense, James has been a major force for change in many ways off the basketball court, using his worldwide star power to bring focus to important issues. Most notably, he helped create “More Than a Vote,” a nonprofit organization devoted to supporting Black voters. He also opened the “I Promise School,” a public school in his native Akron, Ohio, for at-risk students.
But he still has numerous critics. James recently found himself in a war of words with AC Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who said the four-time MVP is making a mistake by dipping his toes into “politics.”
“[LeBron] is phenomenal at what he’s doing, but I don’t like when people have some kind of status, they go and do politics at the same time,” Ibrahimovic said in an interview with Discovery+ Sweden. “Do what you’re good at. Do the category you do. I play football because I’m the best at playing football. I don’t do politics. If I would be a political politician, I would do politics.
“That is the big first mistake people do when they become famous and they become in a certain status. Stay out of it. Just do what you do best because it doesn’t look good.”
James was asked about the comments from Ibrahimovic and said he “would never shut up about things that are wrong.”
“I preach about my people and I preach about equality. Social injustice. Racism. Systematic voter suppression. Things that go on in our community,” James said. “Because I was a part of my community at one point and saw the things that was going on and I know what’s going on still because I have a group of 300-plus kids at my school that are going through the same thing and they need a voice. And I’m their voice. I’m their voice and I use my platform to continue to shed light on everything that may be going on, not only in my community, but around this country and around the world.
“So, there’s no way I would ever just stick to sports because I understand how this platform and how powerful my voice is.”
LeBron responded after Zlatan Ibrahimovic criticized him for his activism.
“I’m kind of the wrong guy to actually go at because I do my homework.”
Clay Travis: Steph Curry More Influential Than LeBron
Travis also had some criticism about James’ influence on the court, saying that Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry has made more of an impact on the game.
“My biggest takeaway remains the same that it has been for several years and it is that Stephen Curry is more influential in the game of basketball than LeBron,” Travis said when reflecting on the All-Star Game. “The LeBron stans all lose their minds when I say this, but let me explain what I mean. Kids all want to be Steph Curry. None of them want to be LeBron.
“LeBron is an incredible basketball player, but he hasn’t really changed in any way the way basketball is played. Guys like Steph Curry and Damian Lillard have. They are making shots just across half-court. They are the kids’ idols. That’s who they aspire to become. The 3-point shot has replaced the dunk as the most exciting part of basketball.”
Travis is right, to an extent. It’s a much more achievable outcome for up-and-comers to dream about becoming Curry, a 6-foot-3 and 193-pound sharpshooter, rather than James, a physical freak with otherworldly abilities and longevity.
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