LeBron James should have better things to do with his time than criticize Doug Gottlieb, according to Doug Gottlieb.
While the four-time NBA MVP was apparently too banged up to participate in the All-Star Game over the weekend, he wasn’t too hurt to reach for his receipts. Taking to X on Monday, James curiously took aim at Doug Gottlieb, sharing a social media post mocking the Wisconsin-Green Bay head coach for having not won a game in more than three months.
“Earned 2 Not Given! Gotta give him credit though!” James added, along with a series of crying laughing and poop emojis.
While James’ post may have initially been confusing to many, it didn’t take long for most to connect the dots. Ultimately, the potshot appears to be a response to comments that Gottlieb — who still hosts a national show for Fox Sports Radio — had made last summer expressing skepticism that Bronny James would start for Wisconsin-Green Bay.
Gottlieb didn’t respond directly to James’ post on X — where he’s still plenty active — but he did address it while calling into Fox Sports Radio on Monday. And in doing so, the Phoenix head coach did his best to downplay the dig, questioning why James was spending a Monday holiday after the All-Star break taking a shot at him.
“I don’t think it speaks well for somebody who — like, don’t you have the day off?” Gottlieb said of James. “Don’t you have better things to do? My response is: Colin [Cowherd] told me a long time ago, ‘Don’t punch down. Always punch up.’ So me talking trash to him would technically be punching up. And him, it’s punching down. So I don’t know. I guess pettiness and insecurity aren’t limited to just people who aren’t super successful in their field. I guess that would be my response.
“It just doesn’t make any sense. Why on a Presidents’ Day Monday, when you have the day off, are you worried about me. I’m not really sure.”
Gottlieb later added, “I don’t even know what I’m responding to other than LeBron talking ish to me. Why? Because I didn’t think Bronny should be a McDonald’s All-American? Or should have been an NBA draft pick? OK. That’s my job, to give a sports opinion.”
While one could certainly accuse Gottlieb of dishing but not being able to take it — and there could be some of that here — he isn’t wrong that James’ post came out of left field. Not only is the Fox Sports Radio host just one of many personalities who’s been critical of Bronny James being a part of the Los Angeles Lakers’ roster, but his most notable comments on the subject came more than seven months ago.
But unlike fellow Bronny James skeptics such as Stephen A. Smith and Charles Barkley, Gottlieb isn’t just the head coach of a Division I men’s basketball team, but the head coach of a Division I men’s basketball team that happens to be one of the worst in the country. As such, James took the layup — which was more than he was willing to do in San Francisco on Sunday.
About Ben Axelrod
Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.