LeBron James could pull something miraculous and it would still fail to impress Skip Bayless. That’s just how their relationship has been from the start. It is hard to recall the last time the veteran NBA analyst gave James his flowers that weren’t through a backhanded compliment and LeBron’s 40-point night against the Brooklyn Nets gets more or less the same treatment from the host of Undisputed.
Advertisement
“Who can’t be impressed with what LeBron did last night? When he gets hot, he gets crazy hot and we’ve seen it before…He can get cold but he can get crazy crazy hot. And this might’ve been as hot as I’ve ever seen him…So, my first thought was, LeBron, it’s just the Nets. Save it for somebody who really matters.”
LeBron James had one of the best nights of his career shooting from the field and from beyond the arc during the Los Angeles Lakers versus the Brooklyn Nets matchup last night. James finished the night with 40 points, going 13-17 from the field and an insane 9-10 from beyond the arc, per Statmuse.
A stellar feat by The King, it still wasn’t enough for Bayless to let go of the hostility and just applaud him on the historic night he had. Instead, the Undisputed host had to commend his efforts with a backhanded remark, slyly downplaying James’ 40-point game.
Regardless of whether the Los Angeles Lakers were playing the Brooklyn Nets or the Denver Nuggets for instance, it should not take anything away from LeBron James’ 40-point performance. Skip Bayless even took a shot at James crowning himself as he often does after pulling off highlight plays on the floor.
“Did he ever crown himself? Who needs to crown himself? Why don’t you just let people crown you? You don’t have to crown yourself.”
Bayless continued nitpicking James’ performance even further when he claimed it would’ve been far more impressive had LeBron put up these types of numbers in front of Ben Simmons had he been healthy and in the Nets’ starting lineup. He argued that Simmons was 6’10, fast and agile enough to stay alongside James on the floor, and strong enough to not get bullied by the Lakers forward in the paint or while in transition.
Skip Bayless’ criticism regarding LeBron James may have a sliver of facts from time to time but now it might be getting harder and harder to defend his outrageous takes.
LeBron James surpasses MJ yet again
The Los Angeles Lakers’ five-game winning streak came to an end when they played the Indiana Pacers in their last outing. Hell-bent on willing his team into the playoffs, James took it upon himself to retain as much momentum as he could for the team in this final stretch of the season.
LeBron’s near-perfect long-range shooting tied his career high for most threes made in a single game. According to CBSNews, James shot nine three-pointers, going 9-14 from beyond the arc last season when the Lakers faced off the Los Angeles Clippers on January 24, 2023.
This game marked James’ third 40-point game of the season and also the night he surpassed Michael Jordan for most 30-point games in NBA history. As per YahooSports, LeBron James surpassed Jordan, having 672 games with 30-point games under his belt.
As for Skip Bayless, there is no doubt that he is a Michael Jordan fan through and through but by the time LeBron retires, Skip might not ever get a chance to praise what he’s done for the game while he is still able to do it. And that does indeed seem like a shame.
