Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James raised eyebrows with his comments about the city of Memphis during an appearance on Bob Does Sports. James made it clear he does not like playing in the city and called for the Memphis Grizzlies to relocate to Nashville.
James isn’t the first NBA player to be critical of Memphis, but his word carries more weight than others. So much so that even Memphis Mayor Paul Young felt compelled to speak up. Young first praised Stephen A. Smith and Kendrick Perkins on X on Friday for recognizing the importance of Memphis as an NBA city on First Take, and then invited James over.
“LeBron James, I would welcome the chance to turn your criticism into action in one of the most important cities in the world. Come to Memphis and roll around with me for a bit, and I will show you some of the culture and powerful investment opportunities in our City.”
James has not responded to Young’s invitation yet. The Lakers will not be playing in Memphis again this season, so it is unlikely the 41-year-old makes that trip anytime soon. Will James head over in the offseason? Well, it seems unlikely based on the comments he made.
“Staying at the f——g Hyatt at 41 years old?” James said. “You think I wanna do that s–t? Being in Memphis on a random Thursday?”
“I’m not the first guy to talk about it in the NBA,” James stated. “…You guys have to move. Go over to Nashville, you’ve got Vanderbilt, NASCAR, a stadium, a hockey team,”
James also added that had the Grizzlies gotten the No. 1 pick in the 2003 NBA Draft, he might not have even shown up. To say he isn’t a fan would be an understatement, but he isn’t the only one.
Minnesota Timberwolves superstar Anthony Edwards hates going to the hotels in Memphis. Edwards says those rooms are dirty, and he certainly doesn’t look forward to that trip.
While the likes of James and his good friend Draymond Green would be all for the Grizzlies relocating to Nashville, its mayor, Freddie O’Connell, isn’t entertaining the subject. TMZ reached out to O’Connell after Green called for relocation on The Draymond Green Show in March.
“I love Memphis and the Grizzlies,” O’Connell said.
“They do training camps here, and we’d love to see them play a few games here, but our most recent bids have been for professional women’s teams,” O’Connell stated.
So, don’t count on the Grizzlies moving out of Memphis anytime soon. The only change we might be getting is the team being moved to the Eastern Conference if the NBA goes ahead with expansion to Las Vegas and Seattle.
Getting back to Young, he hopes to accomplish great things in Memphis with James, and he also thanked O’Connell for his comments.
“Let’s do something epic in one of the largest majority-Black cities in the nation!
“Sidenote: Big thanks to Mayor Freddie O’Connell for responding to TMZ a few weeks ago with support for Memphis as the right home for the Grizz…We couldn’t agree more!”
Young was born in Memphis and grew up in the Oakhaven neighborhood. He won the 2023 mayoral election and was sworn into office on Jan. 1, 2024. Young definitely wouldn’t want the Grizzlies to go anywhere, and it sure doesn’t seem like something he needs to worry too much about.
