Death, taxes, and criticizing LeBron James. That’s the rotation for a large chunk of basketball pundits and analysts today, many of whom have spent the past 20 years perfecting the art. Leading that pack is Skip Bayless, the controversial analyst who has been picking apart James for far too long.
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Fortunately, James has never had to face the criticism alone. Back in 2011, after the Miami Heat lost the NBA Finals to the Dallas Mavericks, his former teammate Dwyane Wade defended him during an interview with Skip Bayless.
Bayless started the conversation by straight-up asking D-Wade about his comments on LeBron and how he “froze up” in the series against Dallas. “Big picture, have I been too tough on LeBron?” asked Bayless, who was 59 at the time. “That would be a capital Y-E-S,” answered Wade with a smile on his face, but also with a bit of attitude.
Bayless asked why Wade believed that. The Flash didn’t hesitate to speak his mind, though he still kept things professional. “Just like I said about Charles Barkley, first of all, we as athletes respect your guys’ opinions,” began Dwyane.
“I respect the things you say about the game of basketball because over the years, I have seen that you do have knowledge. When someone has knowledge of the sport, you take the criticism that they bring.”
Wade went on to explain that Skip was constantly criticizing a guy who was eventually going to become a champion, something James would achieve just a year later. “I just think you might give him a little too much criticism when the guy is a great player, and eventually he’s going to be a champion, and somebody is going to find something else to say about him. You’re very hard on him.”
This might have taken place 14 years ago, but the clip still holds up for one reason: it shows that Wade, in the lion’s den, chose professionalism in the moment. There’s a reason he’s one of the most beloved NBA players of all time.
What hasn’t aged well is the fact that Bayless still has an audience of numskulls who hang on his every word, even though he’s been spouting nonsense since this clip and probably even before that. If an article were written every time Bayless acted like a fool, it would never end.
Now at 40 years old, LeBron James is a certified future Hall of Famer and has left as big a mark on the game as Michael Jordan or Magic Johnson. He’s the league’s all-time leading scorer and doesn’t seem to be slowing down. Bayless can continue to live in LeBron’s shortcomings because it gets him clicks. But clicks don’t equate to legacy. James has one, and he’s still writing it. Skip’s legacy is a meme of him throwing out a Dallas Cowboys jersey.
