New Orleans Pelicans center Jonas Valanciunas took an interesting shot at Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James in a recent video.
Starting at the 2:10:17 mark of the video, Valanciunas begins his mocking of James after he picks up a card that has the superstar’s name on it.
Valanciunas then proceeds to mimic James by fake crying and pretending to flop to the ground. It’s surprising that the Pelicans center feels so negatively towards James.
James, who has been criticized for the occasional flop or for complaining to referees, probably won’t be bothered by Valanciunas’ cheap shot.
James was fantastic for the Lakers in the 2021-22 season even though he missed 26 games due to injury. The four-time NBA champion averaged 30.3 points, 8.2 rebounds and 6.2 assists per game while shooting 52.4 percent from the field and 35.9 percent from beyond the arc.
Valanciunas, who played a critical role for the Pelicans in the 2021-22 campaign, averaged 17.8 points, 11.4 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 0.8 blocks per game while shooting 54.4 percent from the field and 36.1 percent from 3.
The Pelicans big man helped the team get into the playoffs after winning two games in the league’s play-in tournament.
James and Valanciunas have battled for a long time in their careers, dating back to Valanciunas’ time with the Toronto Raptors when James was on the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Despite that, it seems disrespectful to James that Valanciunas would mock him in such a way.
It will be interesting to see if James brings a little extra in his game when the Lakers and Pelicans face off in the 2022-23 season.
