LeBron James interjected himself into Kyrie Irving’s moment ahead of the NBA Finals, and it didn’t go unnoticed by Kendrick Perkins.
Earlier this week on his Mind the Game podcast with co-host JJ Redick, James praised Irving amid his current NBA Finals run with the Dallas Mavericks, calling his former teammate the “most gifted player the NBA has ever seen.” James would go on to note how upset he is that Irving is no longer his running mate. In the wake of that sweet talk, the first question to Irving at his NBA Finals media day presser was about LeBron.
Wednesday afternoon on ESPN’s NBA Today, Perkins chided LeBron for making himself part of the conversation days before the Finals while his Los Angeles Lakers have been out of contention for weeks.
“Here we go again,” Perkins ranted. “Bron weaseling his way into somebody else’s moment…This is not about you! Your team is at home. This is about the Mavs and the Celtics, but yet you’re so mad and disappointed that you’re not Kyrie Irving’s running mate anymore. Here we go again.”
Even when his team is home, and it shouldn’t be about him, LeBron has this uncanny ability to keep himself relevant by inserting his name into headlines. He did it last season by publicly contemplating retirement after the Denver Nuggets swept the Lakers in the Western Conference Finals. And he did it again this season by publicly wishing he still played with Irving, who is in the NBA Finals.
In defense of LeBron, he doesn’t have to do much to generate a headline. He has a podcast, and it befits him to say interesting things on it. It’s not his fault the media, outside of Kendrick Perkins, salivates over LeBron’s every move.
About Brandon Contes
Brandon Contes is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. He previously helped carve the sports vertical for Mediaite and spent more than three years with Barrett Sports Media. Send tips/comments/complaints to bcontes@thecomeback.com