NBA preseason can often be a weird time for the basketball community. For players, it’s a time for testing out lineups, testing schemes, and warming up for the season to come. For fans, it’s the first look at just how good your team may (or may not) be.
Unfortunately for LeBron James, his latest preseason match has become a bit of a scandal after one particular clip of the game went viral on Twitter. Six minutes into the second quarter, James appears to undercut and then push Suns player Mikal Bridges as he was flying to the rim. Bridges was hurting for a while, but he did return to the game.
https://twitter.com/FOXSPORTSAZ/status/1340143732994224129https://twitter.com/FOXSPORTSAZ/status/1340143732994224129
One of the dirtiest plays I’ve ever seen
— Post NASA Lies (@PostNASA) December 19, 2020
Mikal Bridges lands HARD on his back after a no-call on LeBron https://t.co/2NrtasLAKx
— Ahn Fire Digital (@AhnFireDigital) December 19, 2020
Obviously, there’s no way to know for certain LeBron’s intentions at the moment, but fans still came up with their own verdicts.
https://twitter.com/Ricj27_/status/1340145027138400258
Damn it dude. I love Mikal Bridges. Been one of my favorite players since he was at Nova.
Fuck LeBron James fr https://t.co/oYzenEzoSY
— 𝙕𝙖𝙘𝙠🥊 (@PrettyyFIacko) December 19, 2020
https://twitter.com/DMelrose41/status/1340144941394087939https://twitter.com/daamage/status/1340163661617266688
That was a DIRTY & DISGUSTING play by the Lakers’ player!
— Michael Miller (@mike42586) December 19, 2020
Some did come to his defense…
Lebron isn’t going to intentionally injure a player on a at best 6 seed in the preseason. Use your head.
— Drew (@drew__bare) December 19, 2020
https://twitter.com/djwilliams1997/status/1340147262299713540
Def not an undercut, barely even made contact with him
— Aspekt (@Aspektbeats) December 19, 2020
The idea that LeBron did this on purpose seems like a stretch, especially considering it’s a preseason game. While Bron should definitely have been called for a serious foul there, there’s nothing to suggest it should be anything more.
Nevertheless, the narratives are always going to fly, especially when the best basketball player on the planet is involved.
