Millions of fans sometimes stream games from illegal websites, with many doing it to save money on expensive cable or streaming subscriptions.
That’s obviously not a good excuse for NBA star LeBron James, who appeared to get caught in the act Friday night illegally streaming a game.
An X video surfaced showing James at a Nike EYBL tournament watching his AAU team, Team Strive For Greatness. The person sitting next to James pulled up the Dallas Mavericks vs. Minnesota Timberwolves Western Conference Finals game on the website StreamEast, one of the most popular illegal streaming sites.
It must be pointed out that James himself did not call up the game, and there’s no information on his relationship with the person beside him. Still, it’s a bad look for one of the NBA’s all-time greats.
Yet the interesting angle to all this is the reaction from fans. Many are not mad or disappointed at James for appearing to break the rules — they’re upset because the incident called attention to the popular website, and they’re afraid it will get the site taken down. Others say they don’t blame James, pointing out it just makes him one of the guys.
As far as James’ incident getting StreamEast shut down, that’s unlikely. Sites that illegally stream movies and sporting events can be almost impossible to regulate because they operate in other countries with lax or no copyright laws. However, users can face fines and legal issues if their ISP discovers they are watching illegal streams, but even those cases are exceedingly rare.
[BroBible.com; Photo Credit: LakeShowYo via X]
About Arthur Weinstein
Arthur spends his free time traveling around the U.S. to sporting events, state and national parks, and in search of great restaurants off the beaten path.