LeBron James is definitely no stranger to being heckled.
via: Complex
In the middle of the Lakers’ game against the New Orleans Pelicans, which ended in a blowout, LeBron was heard responding to a fan in the crowd who appeared to be heckling him. “Tell me one thing you know about basketball besides the ball going in … Shut your ass up,” he can be heard saying in the clip below.
The Lakers season has been so brutal that we’re at a point where LeBron, Ariza and Russ are now arguing with fans lol
(c) Michael Morales/Instagram pic.twitter.com/yuViF4dZPw
— Nicole Ganglani (@nicoleganglani) February 28, 2022
During much of the second half of the game, the Lakers were met with boos from fans hoping to see the team beat the Pelicans. In a post game interview, LeBron said, “I don’t have answers for tonight.” He admitted that the team’s performance, from the eighth minute of the second quarter onwards, wasn’t up to standard. “Right now it’s about how we can get better today. … We’ve still got 10 road games in March, so it doesn’t get easier for us.”
He wasn’t the only Laker player to respond to jeers from the crowd on Sunday. In the same clip above, shared by Michael Morales on Instagram, Trevor Ariza could be heard calling someone in the crowd a “bitch.” The heckler in that instance was later escorted out of the Crypto.com Arena. Russell Westbrook was also filmed interacting with the crowd, but it’s unclear what he said.
The Lakers currently sit ninth in the Western Conference, losing seven of their last ten games. LeBron hasn’t had a good time with hecklers this season, either, notably getting two Indiana Pacers fans removed from a game in November, 2021. “When obscene gestures and language come into it, can’t be tolerated,” said LeBron during a post-game interview. “There’s a difference from cheering for your team and not wanting the other team to win and things I would never say to a fan and they shouldn’t say to me.”
https://youtu.be/9LIFu5Enkgg
