LeBron James is being mocked and ripped for saying “It’s just basketball” after the Los Angeles Lakers’ latest playoff loss. But the viral clip is a misrepresentation of his actual point.
The Lakers have been far from perfect in their playoff series against the Denver Nuggets, which is part of why they find themselves in a seemingly insurmountable 0-3 hole. Following their Game 3 loss, LeBron was asked about previously claiming the team needs to play near-perfect basketball to beat the Nuggets in a seven-game series, and whether those comments are causing his teammates to feel stress, pressure and anxiety.
“It’s the postseason, we’re professionals. You’re supposed to have anxiety and feel the pressure,” James said. “That’s what it’s about. This is what the postseason is about. So, I don’t know how to answer that question.”
LeBron proceeded to note he can’t answer for his teammates on the feeling of pressure and the need to play perfect basketball against the Nuggets. But as far as LeBron is concerned, he knows what it takes to win.
“We know what it takes to win. We know what it takes to win a championship and how damn near-perfect you gotta be,” James continued. “That’s not like something that’s so crazy to obtain. I’ve been a part of it four times, where you have to have almost perfect basketball to win…I don’t feel a way about anybody that doesn’t want to strive to be as close to perfect as possible. And it’s just basketball. At the end of the day, it’s just basketball.”
LeBron spent nearly 90 seconds answering the question, but the “It’s just basketball. At the end of the day, it’s just basketball” line is a six-second clip that has since gone viral. Fans, analysts and media personalities are using the video to allege LeBron doesn’t care about the sport that made him a billionaire.
It only takes one minute to check for the context behind the six-second clip. But that risks blowing up the narrative that LeBron doesn’t care about basketball. LeBron has said many things worthy of ridicule. His comment about being happier than his critics after the Miami Heat lost the 2011 NBA Finals to the Dallas Mavericks being one of them. But his “It’s just basketball” comment from Thursday night wasn’t that.
LeBron was not saying “It’s just basketball” as a way of brushing off the loss. In full context, LeBron was explaining why asking his teammates to strive for perfection in basketball shouldn’t be detrimental. But that narrative isn’t nearly as easy to mock.