When LeBron James was trolled by Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s quirky move after he tried welcoming the notorious football star to LA
LeBron James is one of the most recognizable figures in the world of modern sports due to his accomplishments and dominance. However, one soccer superstar isn't really fond of the NBA star and even trolled him once.
James didn't play for Los Angeles until the 2018-19 NBA season, which was also the same time Zlatan Ibrahimovic became part of Major League Soccer. The Swedish soccer star joined the LA Galaxy in March 2018, and even had a full-page advertisement in the Los Angeles Times to commemorate his arrival.
"Dear Los Angeles, You're welcome. Zlatan Ibrahimovic #9, LA Galaxy" - the advert taken out in today's LA Times https://t.co/bjrbrkdAqq
King James welcomed the brash superstar to Los Angeles by sending him a jersey. However, fans didn't think Ibrahimovic would pull a stunt that was unimaginable for someone like James. The four-time NBA champion tried to welcome Zlatan with open arms, but he responded by being a troll.
Ibrahimovic signed the jersey sent by James and mailed it back to the NBA star. This instance went unnoticed by many media outlets at the time.
LeBron James gifted jersey to Zlatan Ibrahimovic, he mailed it back with his autograph - Marca English dlvr.it/SdZVdb https://t.co/gYiWtqNl8P
This isn't the only instance when the two have interacted. In 2021, Ibrahimovic made comments about separating sports from politics, to which the NBA star didn't agree. James said that it's his desire to preach about equality and use his platform to make situations better.
Ibrahimovic responded with this:
"(LeBron) is phenomenal at what he's doing, but I don't like when people have some kind of status, they go and do politics at the same time. Do what you're good at. Do the category you do. I play football because I'm the best at playing football."
LeBron James still didn't agree with Ibrahimovic's take and responded (via bleacherreport.com).
LeBron responded after Zlatan Ibrahimovic criticized him for his activism.
“I’m kind of the wrong guy to actually go at because I do my homework.” https://t.co/VyKgBrYuiz
"It makes me feel proud to be a part of a generation where our voices are heard and guys are speaking from an educated mindset," James said. "But more importantly, when you speak from your heart, it rings bells even louder."
Also read: "If you are intelligent, you understand" - Football star Zlatan Ibrahimovic remains convinced that LeBron James shouldn't mix sports with politics
LeBron James and the LA Lakers suffer another heartbreaking loss
The LA Lakers suffered another defeat despite brilliant performances from their big three. LeBron James scored 21 points, while Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook had 25 and 24, respectively. The Indiana Pacers got their best down the stretch as the Lakers blew a 17-point lead and won 116-115 on Andrew Nembhard's 3-pointer at the buzzer.
Early in the fourth period, the Lakers had a 101-84, but they allowed the Pacers to have a 10-2 run which cut the lead to under 10 points. From there, Indiana gained momentum and gave the Lakers a hard time.
With 8.7 seconds left in the game, the Pacers went for the win. Luckily for the Pacers, the Lakers didn't do a good job in closing out on their shooters. Los Angeles (7-12) left Nembhard open from the outside, and he nailed a game-winning 3-pointer.
Also read: NBA fans were ready to go OFF as LA Lakers lost to Indiana Pacers unbelievably: “Over LeMickey lmfao, MJ would’ve blocked that”, “Owned the fakers”