Getty LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers reacts during play against the Houston Rockets.
A new video angle surfaced that could shed light on what transpired between Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James and Houston Rockets coach Ime Udoka during their verbal spat.
“We all grown men,” James allegedly told Udoka after the Rockets coach’s remarks irked him. “That b—h word ain’t cool, don’t use it so loosely. Don’t use that word so loosely. Nah, don’t use it so loosely, though. Don’t use it so loosely.”
This angle of the LeBron-Udoka exchange 👀 (via unitedlife4ever/TT)
The verbal spat stemmed from what James perceived as a traveling violation on the Rockets big man Alperen Sengun.
Allegedly, Udoka initially told James, “Y’all got to stop with all the b—ching man!”
After James’ response, Udoka did not let up.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah I can. What does it matter what I think? Worry bout ya own self, soft a– little boy,” Udoka allegedly replied to James which led to a double technical foul and the Rockets coach’s ejection.
The Rockets trailed 93-78 when the heated exchange occurred. Instead of firing up the Rockets, Udoka’s ejection backfired as the Lakers cruised to a 107-97 victory to improve to 12-9. The Rockets (8-9) suffered their third straight loss.
LeBron James, Ime Udoka Brush off Incident
After the game, James joked about the incident.
“Thanksgiving,” James said when asked what he was talking about with Udoka via LakeShow Interviews. “How much we enjoyed Thanksgiving.”
Udoka was not in the mood to talk about it afterward, referring only to James as “the player.”
“We had some conversation, and the refs didn’t like what they heard,” Udoka told reporters after the loss.
James did not score the rest of the game as he wound up tying his season-low 16 points. But it didn’t matter as the Lakers used a balanced attack to ground the Rockets.
Anthony Davis led the way with a monster effort of 27 points, 14 rebounds and seven blocks. Austin Reaves pumped in 18 points while Max Christie had 12 off the bench. Cam Reddish added 11 points in his return from a groin injury.
LeBron James Speaks About Maverick Carter’s NBA Gambling
James defended his longtime friend and business manager Maverick Carter after his admission to placing sports bets, including NBA games, through an illegal bookie.
“No,” James said via LA Times’ Dan Woike when asked if he was concerned about the perception of Carter’s admission. “Because that’s the only reason it got any legs in the first place because he’s so close to me. But Maverick’s his own man and at the end of the day, gambling is legal. I mean, you can go on your phone right now and do whatever you want. And he has no affiliation with the NBA or NFL, so, he can do what he wants to do.”
The Washington Post reported on November 30 that Carter made the admission during a November 2021 interview with federal agents investigating bookie Wayne Nix.
Carter was never charged while Nix pleaded guilty to charges stemming from his role running a sprawling offshore sports-betting ring, according to the report.
James and Carter were teammates in high school and have several business partnerships, which include SpringHill Entertainment, a media production company, and minority stakes in the Boston Red Sox and Liverpool FC.