LeBron James Drops Taunting Message on Lakers Teammate During Postgame Interview

LeBron James may have spent the last seven years of his career surrounded by the glamor of Hollywood playing for the Los Angeles Lakers, but the NBA legend has never made any secret of his love for his home state, Ohio. And it was his passion for Ohio that led on Saturday to one of the lighter moments in an often difficult season for the Los Angeles Lakers so far.

James was drafted first overall in 2003 by Ohio’s only NBA team, the Cleveland Cavaliers, straight out of St. Vincent-St. Mary High School in his hometown of Akron, at the age of 18.

After spending seven seasons in Cleveland, getting to the NBA Finals once in 2007 but losing 4-0 to the San Antonio Spurs, James became a free agent and famously announced that he was “taking my talents to South Beach,” signing with the Miami Heat. He played in Miami for four seasons, reaching the NBA Finals every year he was there and winning the championship twice. But Ohio once again beckoned.

LeBron is the Ultimate Ohio State Fan

James re-signed with the Cavaliers saying that he was determined to bring a championship to Cleveland, a city that had not brought home a title in any major sport since the Cleveland Browns won the 1964 NFL championship in the pre-Super Bowl era. James delivered on his promise. He took the Cavaliers to four straight NBA Finals, taking home the trophy in 2016.

While he never went to college, James has said that if he had been required to do so, he would have played basketball at Ohio State University. His love for the school that he never attended is such that both James himself and the Ohio State athletic department treat the storied Big Ten school as his his unofficial alma mater. James frequently attends Ohio State basketball and football games and even has an “honorary locker” there.

So it was not surprising on Saturday to see James acting like a starry-eyed fan when Ohio State was facing Tennessee in the first round of the College Football Playoffs. James and the Lakers were taking on the Sacramento Kings at the same time and James seemed fueled by the excitement of the CFB game, scoring 32 points to lead Los Angeles to a 103-99 victory.

James Taunts Dalton Knecht Over Ohio State Game

James then hurried back to the locker room to watch the Ohio State-Tennessee game. He even broke away from a postgame on-camera interview with ESPN NBA reporter Dave McMenamin to see the Buckeyes go up by a 21-0 score.

That led to a good natured taunt directed at his teammate Dalton Knecht — who played college basketball at Tennessee.

“Hey! DK! 21–0! Don’t worry about it,” James shouted across the locker room, interrupting the ESPN interview. He then yelled at teammate D’Angelo “DLo” Russell, a former Ohio State Buckeye himself, “Hey DLo! Tell him now!”

Ohio State went on to cruise past Tennessee in the game by a score of 42-17.

Bronny James, the eldest son of LeBron, was drafted by the Lakers in the second round in 2024 and currently plays for the team’s G League affiliate. But James has a second son, Bryce, who is also a high school basketball star and is expected to play college ball in the fall of 2025 at, of course, Ohio State.

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