The Lakers superstar recently visited China as part of a business promotion with Nike. But the trip may not have gone as well as he’d planned. Earlier, LeBron James missed multiple shots during the main event, giving him a viral series of lowlights that he would clearly want to forget.
Additionally, an article was published in a Chinese newspaper, ‘People’s Daily’, which was reportedly backed by the Communist government, prompting a lot of backlash in Hong Kong and the US. This article claimed that LeBron James was the author of the article.
But according to sources close to James, as per The Athletic, James never wrote or contributed to the article himself. Instead, his words from a press conference have been directly taken and interpreted in the article, which he had nothing to do with.
The article in question does mention below the article that it has been edited by a reporter of the People’s Daily, but it also misleads readers by claiming LeBron James was the ‘author’ of the article.
Shortly after the article was published, former NFL reporter Michele Tafoya, among many fans, slammed LeBron James for allegedly working with an organization that supports acts against humanity.
Tafoya appeared on OutKick’s “Don’t @ Me with Dan Dakich” and gave her thoughts on James’ column. She initially questioned the legitimacy of the report, but went on to criticize James after assuming his contributions were real.
“The first (thought) was, ‘OK, is this real? Is this A.I.? Is this legit? Is he this ill-informed?’… This is like American malpractice,” Tafoya said.
“This is the guy who is defending China to the hills. Why? Because all of his sneakers are made there.”
“And he is ignorant of the human rights (issues) – the absolute atrocities going on in China, and the fact that China would like to destroy most of the Western world and own the globe, or else LeBron loves that idea,” Tafoya added.
“Maybe he’s all in. Maybe that’s what he wants too. For a guy who is very vocal about the slave history of the United States of America.
“He’s certainly able to overlook the slave life that’s still going on in China. I would never understand this, and I would love to sit down and interview him about it because I have a lot of pointed questions, but I don’t think he’s going to take any questions about this.”
James is not the first NBA player to visit China this year as part of their endorsement deals with companies like Nike and Adidas. Even James Harden, Jalen Williams, Kawhi Leonard, and other players have visited China this offseason.
James’ visits to China have often been riddled with controversies. The last time he went was in 2019 for the NBA’s preseason games amid the controversy with Daryl Morey at the time. When James returned to the US after that visit, he criticized Morey for mixing basketball and politics.
Basketball is the bridge that can connect the world, and without the Chinese support, that would not be possible, considering they are the second-largest country in the world with the largest population.
What is allegedly happening with Uyghur Muslims in China is unfortunate, and I seriously condemn that, if true. But that should not hamper the good work that basketball could potentially do for the world.
