Former NBA guard Iman Shumpert made some comments regarding Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James that have been deemed controversial.
In an interview on the Bootleg Kev podcast, Shumpert said it was James, not Kevin Durant, who “ruined” the NBA by joining the Miami Heat.
“It wasn’t K.D.,” Shumpert said. “It was Bron first going to Miami. Bron knows he ruined basketball. He thought he was making it better. Me personally, I loved the NBA for the loyalty that I thought was there. He basically knocked the fourth wall down.
“Great business move for sure. But when you think about it outside looking in, I got people tweeting me right now, they’re literally talking about owners and trade.”
While Shumpert’s comments may seem like a dig at James, the former Cleveland Cavaliers guard clarified that it was meant as a compliment on social media.
You saw the clip and not the convo. LeBron changed the way teams are built forever. Check the length of these contracts https://t.co/1q9Q3gOgM5
— Iman. (@imanshumpert) December 21, 2021
Shumpert and James played together on the Cavaliers and won an NBA title together during the 2015-16 season.
The Lakers superstar certainly changed the game of basketball by moving to different teams and pairing with other superstars, but Shumpert clearly didn’t mean any harm by commenting on those decisions.
Both James and Durant have formed superteams in their careers, but James has won titles with three different franchises in his storied NBA career.
The four-time champion is looking to win his fifth title and second with the Lakers during the 2021-22 season.
