Shannon Sharpe and NFL Legend Troll LeBron James’ “Stiff” Golf Swing

Nickeem Khan | 23/08/2025
LeBron James golf (L) and basketball (R)

A popular pastime for NBA players happens to be the game of golf. Many current and former players have turned to the calm and quiet nature of the sport to give them physical and mental reset. Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James is one of the most recent basketballers to step on the green. However, a few NFL legends believe his golf swing needs some work.

Golf has become a big part of LeBron James’ offseason. Earlier in August, LeBron and his son Bronny went on a retreat together, which included golfing. That wasn’t a one-time thing, as he has seemingly fallen in love with the sport.

In a recent episode of Nightcap, Shannon Sharpe, Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson and Joe Johnson reacted to a clip of LeBron’s swing. None of them are professional golfers by any means, though Shannon and Joe do have some experience on the range. But they didn’t have the sweetest compliments for James’ form.

“Those shoulders are too tight,” Sharpe said. Johnson followed Sharpe’s comments by saying, “He’s supposed to get them lessons right before he gets out there on that course.”

The motion of LeBron’s swing didn’t flow as smoothly as it should. A large portion of that could be due to his strength as well as his lack of training. But Joe Johnson doesn’t have any doubt that LeBron will eventually be perfectly able to hold his own.

“He’s going to be alright, though. Just keep working,” Joe said.

Ocho couldn’t provide any expertise due to his inexperience with golf. However, he believes he could do pretty good if he put his mind to it. He showcased his golf form in front of Sharpe and Johnson, who confirmed that his is worse than LeBron’s.

LeBron may be arguably the best player in NBA history, but it will take time before he is even in contention for the best NBA player who golfs. A familiar foe stands in his way, who even had a few jokes regarding James’ swing.

Stephen Curry impersonates LeBron James’ golf swing

Curry has proven to be quite the golfer. His hole-in-one at the 2023 American Century Championship is one of the greatest plays of an amateur golfer ever. If there’s an NBA player with valid criteria to speak on golf, it is certainly Curry.

A month ago, Curry took part in the ACC once again. At the time, LeBron began to go viral for his unorthodox golf swing. Curry poked fun at LeBron by impersonating him.

It was all fun and games, from Curry to his dear friend. Afterward, he offered some words of encouragement to LeBron ahead of his new journey in the golf world.

“Unbelievable impersonation of my guy LeBron’s follow-through in the golf swing. But we all want to welcome LeBron James to the world of golf because the game needs you, big fella,” Curry said.

LeBron has some work to do before he is on Curry’s level, but it would be interesting to see the two duel in a setting outside of a basketball court.

Post Edited By: Jodi Whisenhunt
Chad Johnson LeBron James shannon sharpe

About the author

Nickeem Khan

Nickeem Khan is a Senior NBA Writer for The SportsRush from Toronto, Canada. He graduated from Toronto Metropolitan University with a Bachelor's Degree in Sport Media. Nickeem has over five years of experience in the sports media industry with hands-on experience as a journalist among other roles, including media accreditation for the CEBL, NBA G-League's Raptors 905, and CBC's coverage of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. When he isn't writing articles, he serves as a member of the Toronto Raptors' Game Presentation Crew.

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