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LeBron James has never been a popular figure among Boston Celtics fans, but during a recent appearance on The Recount, the self-proclaimed “King” took things to a new level.
When asked why he hates Boston, LeBron replied by saying that the fans were ‘racist as f***’ before continuing to expand on his explanation.
“Because they’re racist as f***, that’s why. They will say anything…I don’t mind it, if I hear somebody close behind, I’ll check it and I’ll move on to the game. They’re going to say whatever they want to say, they might throw something on you, I mean, I got a beer threw over me leaving a game…There was like a ‘F*** LBJ’ T-shirt, and I believe they probably sold that in the team shop, I think the Celtics had something to do with that s***,” LeBron said when discussing the Boston fanbase.
As noted by Jared Greenspan of The New York Post, “James’ rhetoric is the latest in a string of athletes’ comments critiquing Boston sports fans.”
LeBron, who is a minority stakeholder in the Boston Red Sox, has a long history against the Celtics, after doing battle with them during his early career, first with the Cleveland Cavaliers, then with the Miami Heat, and then again in the 2018 Eastern Conference Finals.
Kyrie Irving has Made Similar Claims in the Past
Boston is known for having a hostile crowd during big games, especially when they have taken a dislike to a player – something Kyrie Irving can attest to following his acrimonious departure from the Celtics in 2019.
When speaking to the media ahead of game three of the 2021 NBA Playoffs series against the Celtics – which the Brooklyn Nets won in five games, Irving noted how he hoped the TD Garden crowd would keep things strictly basketball.
“I am just looking forward to competing with my teammates and hopefully, we can just keep it strictly basketball; there’s no belligerence or racism going on – subtle racism,” Irving said.
Celtics Fans Were Under Spotlight in NBA Finals
During the 2022 NBA Finals, Celtics fans were back in the spotlight following their treatment of Draymond Green, after large sections of the TD Garden took part in a ‘F*** Draymond’ chant, with his wife and children in the crowd.
While Green himself brushed off the crowd’s treatment of him, his wife and teammates were not so forgiving and took to the media, and social media, to share their thoughts on the situation.
“The crowd’s response to Draymond? Classy. Very classy,” Kerr told reporters following the June 8 contest between the Celtics and Golden State Warriors.
Klay Thompson also shared his thoughts on the matter, telling the media, “We’ve played in front of rude people before. Dropping f-bombs with children in the crowd. Real classy. Good job, Boston.”
“Wow. F**k you Celtics fans. All I have to say is f**k you. The response I’ve seen from what I said is all negative. My Husband, Draymond Green is a human being, the audacity of your fan base, @Celtics, is just disgusting. My son was scrolling through his NBA Twitter burner account and came across some really rude comments towards his father. This can not be tolerated anymore,” Hazel Renee – Green’s wife, wrote on her Instagram stories, following Celtics fans reaction to her displeasure.
One thing’s for certain at this point, and that is there’s a fine line between being passionate and disrespectful, and it seems that multiple competitors who come to play against Boston often feel like Celtics fans regularly cross that line. And of course, if there are racial issues taking place at games, one would hope the NBA and the Celtics organization take strong action against any and all perpetrators.
However, as Jaylen Brown said during a May 29, 2021, press conference, “I think that not every Celtics fan — I know that every Celtics fan in our arena is not a racist. We have people of all walks of life, ethnicities, and colors, that are diehard Celtics fans. So I think painting every Celtics fan as a racist would be unfair.” Finally, Brown spoke on the wide-ranging impact of racism, in Boston, America, and around the world, and you can hear his full interview in the video below.
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