LeBron James is the NBA’s all-time leading scorer and a four-time champion. But like most things, with such great success comes much scrutiny.
LeBron James is arguably the best basketball player in the world. In his NBA career, James has four NBA championships, four Finals MVPs, four NBA MVPs, one NBA In-Season Tournament title, one NBA In-Season Tournament MVP, 20 All-Star Game appearances, and leads the NBA in all-time scoring.But while the Los Angeles Lakers star certainly makes a case to be the GOAT of basketball, there’s no doubt that he’s also one of the most hated basketball players in the NBA. For this piece, let’s rank the 10 petty reasons haters hate LeBron James.
10. Flopping accusations against LeBron James
While James is one of the best all-around players in the planet, there are incidents where he was caught doing something NBA fans hate, which is flopping. Given James’ size and strength, fans are simply not buying his reactions to the physicality at play. As a result, this certainly tops the list as the least petty reason to hate him.
9. LeBron James complaining to refs
Complaining to the referees doesn’t help any team, including the Lakers. As a result, it isn’t surprising that this is one of the annoyances mentioned about James’ on-court behavior.
By complaining to the referees, James can be caught not running back on defense, giving away an easy basket for the opposing team. Moreover, it also hampers the rhythm of the team while they try to get to their sets.
However, fans must also realize that referees also have their own fair share of mistakes, which should justify the frustration of The King like this missed call against the Boston Celtics.
8. LeBron James as an alleged stat padder
As of late, it’s fair to say that the Lakers aren’t the hottest team in the NBA because of their deflating losses. But while James has been the silver lining on several occasions, his haters have used it as an opportunity to frame him as a stat padder.
Throughout his career with some of the least star-powered teams, James has taken it upon himself to register some of the best numbers. However, it’s hard to accuse him of being a stat padder, especially when he has already taken three different franchises to four NBA championships and an In-Season Tournament championship.
7. LeBron James and The Decision
There’s no doubt that plenty of NBA fans, especially Cavs fans, hated James for leaving Cleveland after failing to fulfill his promise of winning a championship for his home city. As we all know, after repeated playoff failures with the Cavs, James left the franchise for the Miami Heat during free agency to form the Big Three with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh.
With the Heat, James won two NBA championships before making his triumphant return to the Cavaliers, where he fulfilled his promise of giving the city its first NBA title. By winning the historic comeback 2016 NBA title conquest, this should have atoned for the outrage the Cavs fans felt, which saw them burn The King’s jerseys.
6. LeBron James hopping teams
LeBron James is the first player in NBA history to win Finals MVP with three different teams. pic.twitter.com/tcPLvGoLxK
— StatMuse (@statmuse) October 12, 2020
Another reason that haters pick on James is his history of playing with different NBA franchises, accusing him of not being loyal.
But while James may have played for three different teams, pretty sure winning a championship with all the teams he played for should have justified his team-hopping history. In fact, he’s the first and only player in NBA history to win an NBA championship and Finals MVP with three different franchises.
5. LeBron James acting as LeGM
https://twitter.com/kbr_sports/status/1526602067044884481One of the top-five petty reasons fans hate on James is when basketball fans suspect that The King also acts as the general manager of the teams he is playing for. Until today, we’ve witnessed several NBA teams make a roster overhaul by signing up players that would fit well alongside James, some of which saw teams trade away young prospects in exchange for an NBA superstar.
While some basketball fans wouldn’t agree with the moves and blame it on James, there’s no doubt that James is a worthy franchise player worth building around.
4. LeBron James passing it up in the clutch
On several occasions, we’ve seen James pass up the potential game-winning shot by kicking out to his teammate. His decisions have convinced some haters to accuse him of not being clutch, which is one of the pettiest reasons to hate on The King.
James is an elite playmaker, who trusts his teammates. Moreover, he’d prefer to give the ball to the open man during the final moments.
Besides, when he was the open man, James has proven in the past that he can make those clutch baskets. From his clutch shots against the Pistons in the 2007 playoffs, to his game-winning buckets in the playoffs, it’s simply illogical to accuse James of not being clutch.
3. LeBron James having ‘no bag’
Considered to be one of the pettiest reasons to hate on James, some haters went as far as describing James of having no bag. This is quite surprising, given that The King is the NBA’s all-time leading scorer.
While James may not have the fanciest of moves, the Lakers star can undoubtedly get buckets, whether you like it or not.
2. LeBron James’ record in the NBA Finals
LeBron Wins in season tournament*
“Means nothing”LeBron loses in season tournament*
“Another finals lost” pic.twitter.com/MLmdESDlda— NBA Memes (@NBAMemes) December 10, 2023
While James has won four NBA championships and one In-Season Tournament title in his career, his haters have often cited his NBA Finals record. As we all know, James is 4-6 in the NBA Finals. Furthermore, he did suffer the receiving end of a sweep in 2007 and had a lackluster 2011 Finals series against the Dallas Mavericks.
However, fans just can’t understand the difficulties and magnitude of winning championships in the NBA. Just ask the long list of Hall of Famers who ended their careers without a ring or let alone a Finals appearance. While many could only dream of winning an NBA title, James already has four to his name as well as the In-Season tournament title.
1. LeBron James and the GOAT debate
LeBron James vs Michael Jordan GOAT Debate across all 50 states pic.twitter.com/D4c8YOaU0B
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) November 4, 2020
Since his high school days, James was hyped as The Chosen One. Proclaiming himself as the best basketball player in the world, NBA fans have debated for several years on who the GOAT of basketball is.
Thus far, the conversation has been heavily centered on James, Michael Jordan, and Kobe Bryant. With the debate heating up, haters have used it as an opportunity to diss James with unfair comparisons, making it the pettiest reason of this list.
In the end, basketball fans must realize that different eras produce different kinds of greatness. As a result, it is nearly impossible to give a fair comparison for players that played in a different time and for different teams. However, it is possible to appreciate the greatness of any player that he achieves in his own era.
