This weekend, Celtics fans find themselves having to defend their reputation after some scathing comments from LeBron James.
In the most recent episode of ‘The Shop,’ James went off on Celtics fans and the city of Boston by explaining his hatred for that community, and it’s fair to say it has turned the entire city (and franchise) against him.
“They racist as f**k, that’s why,” LeBron said. “They will say anything, and it’s fine. I mean, f**k, it’s my life, I’ve been dealing with them my whole life. I don’t mind it. I hear it, if I hear someone close by, I check them real quick. I move on to the game, whatever the f**k. They going to say whatever the f**k they want to say. They might throw something, I got a beer thrown on me leaving a game.”
When Maverick Carter brought up the fact that there were fans wearing F**k LeBron Shirts, James added, “Yeah, it’s like a ‘F**k LBJ’ T-shirt. I believe they probably sold it at the f***ing team shop.”
The statement went viral shortly after it was said, and it is already generating some pretty significant pushback.
On the ‘All the Smoke’ podcast this week, former Celtics big man Glen Davis threw his own jab toward James and called him out for ‘crying’ during their battles. While not a direct response to LeBron’s racism comments, it’s not hard to believe he had those comments in mind when letting these words slip from his mouth:
(h/t Jonathan Sherman of Cavaliers Nation)
“I love Bron,” Davis said. “Bron’s a great guy. I love what he’s doing. It was just crazy to guard that motherf—–. He be crying though. He be crying. Don’t worry, he be crying, but he be playing hard. But he still be crying.”
The Celtics are one of the NBA’s most lucrative and successful franchises. With 17 championships, they have achieved unprecedented prosperity in the sports world. That success has led them face-to-face against LeBron James many times, and James has won those matchups more often than not.
And while many people rave about the city and its culture, it seems that not everybody is a fan of what Boston has to offer — and Bron is one of them. But that’s okay because Celtics fans and players have never been afraid to fight back when someone comes charging at them.