As he watched James warming up while wearing grey sweatpants and no shirt, Thomas, head coach of the Saginaw Soul of the Basketball Super League, told NBA TV, “If I was the GM or coach, I would never let one of my players walk out on the floor looking like this.”
Thomas went on to criticize the NBA as a whole.
“I just think the professionalism in our NBA league has diminished so much,” the Detroit Pistons legend said.
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Thomas told the interviewer:
I just totally, 100% object to this. If I was the GM or coach, I would never let one of my players walk out on the floor looking like this. I mean, we are professional, NBA league. We ain’t Summer League. We ain’t the YMCA.
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I just think the professionalism in our NBA league has diminished so much. … Look, I like LeBron, I’m a fan of his, so forth and so on, but to walk out on the floor before a game, with no shirt on, and shoot, I mean, come on, man? Where we at? What we doing? Where we at?”
Thomas even suggested that NBA commissioner Adam Silver fine James for the shirtless warmup. “Adam Silver, if you want to fine somebody, fine that. Put a fine on that,” Thomas said.
Basketball fans and media commentators had mixed reactions to Thomas’s comments. For the Win’s Charles Curtis called Thomasresponseion “ridiculous,” and said of James, “No one cares if he warms up in a shirt or not. If he wanted to play the game shirtless? Different story.” Curtis wrote Saturday:
This is ridiculous. Imagine being GM Isiah Thomas and walking up to your best player and one of the NBA’s greatest (Thomas once said he was better than Michael Jordan!) and telling him to warm up in a shirt. Let LeBron be LeBron and you’ll continue to get that greatness!
But the thing is: no one cares if he warms up in a shirt or not. If he wanted to play the game shirtless? Different story.
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We’re here talking about warmups! Not a game! WARM-UPS!
Fans’ reactions were mixed, though, with some saying Thomas’s comments are justified considering the current culture of individuality of the NBA and some noting that James “makes it all about himself.”
“Totally agree. Part of the reason less eyes are on the league, because they lost the marketability of the players and the teams. Everything has become individual,” one fan said.
“That’s not an unreasonable take for this league,” another noted.
“Agreed. Makes it all about himself,” another fan said about James.
Other fans took James’s side, noting that “shirts vs skins” pickup games have always been a part of basketball, and comparing the situation to sports such as football, where players warm up shirtless “all the time and no one cares.”
“Football players do this all the time and no one cares. This is a complete nothingburger,” one fan responded.
“Playing pick up a standard move is shirts vs skins. Butt take by Isiah,” another said.
One fan made a tongue-in-cheek comment, saying, “Put his barbie outfit on him.”
The “Barbie” comment comes after Mattel Toys announced the upcoming release of a “Kenbassador” Barbie doll created in James’s likeness.
James was given one of the dolls, which will sell for $75 each according to Mattel, and gave his comments in a video posted to Instagram:
“He dope. … That’s so cool. This is so dang cool,” James said as he inspected the doll’s varsity jacket with ‘LJ’ on the front and quickly took off and replaced the doll’s black baseball cap emblazoned with what appears to be a LeBron James Family Foundation crown logo.
Viewers could not help but notice James’s attention to the cap, and what was under the cap, and many fans commented that the NBA star was inspecting at the doll’s hairline, Athlon Sports noted:
“He had to see how they made his hairline. I would’ve did the same thing if I was him,” a social media user shared.
Another fan observed, “He checked the hair immediately.”
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A poster remarked, “Bro did a hairline check on the low lol”
The Lakers won 140-109 over the Rockets on Friday.
James appeared to respond to Thomas’s criticisms in a post to X on Saturday, where he also congratulated Lakers head coach JJ Redick on the win.
“Man I was going to say something but it’s useless at this point in my career! Anyways more important CONGRATULATIONS JJ on a 50 win season in the WEST & Post Season nod!” James wrote:
“James played just 22 minutes against the Rockets on Friday night before he exited after appearing to aggravate a groin injury. But he remained in the bench area and coach JJ Redick said afterwards that James was ‘fine.’” USA Today noted.
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