Shannon Sharpe Claims He Would Have Pointed Out Ime Udoka’s Failed Relationship While Defending LeBron James: “They Go Low, I Go to The Basement”

Every basketball enthusiast expected the Los Angeles Lakers-Houston Rockets matchup to be a fiery contest. After all, LeBron James was going up against Dillon Brooks. However, as surprising as it may seem, Bron and Brooks didn’t get into any tussles. Instead, it was Ime Udoka who got into an altercation with the 6ft 9” forward.

Using the “b**ch” word excessively, Ime Udoka and LeBron James received technical fouls during the final period of the game. While Bron was awarded his first technical foul, Udoka was ejected after being slapped with his second technical foul.

On the latest episode of ESPN’s First Take, Stephen A. Smith and Shannon Sharpe had an in-depth discussion on the matter. Differing in opinions, the two hosts were quite chaotic as they tried to get their points across.

Smith firmly believed that the Lakers star didn’t need to head over to the Rockets bench and instigate Udoka. Even though the Rockets head coach did use a few cuss words, the analyst didn’t think that the matter was grave enough to get him ejected.

“First of all, I am pretty ticked off that Ime Udoka got ejected. If you the referee, why don’t you call the game? Mind your damn business. What are they gonna do? Get in a fight? Come on man, let them talk. What’s the big deal? That’s part of the theatre of sport… There was no call for that ejection.

Secondly, LeBron walked over to him (Ime) and I have no problem with Ime Udoka, who basically was saying stop being… and LeBron was like don’t be using that word,” Smith explained.

Going the other way, Shannon Sharpe kept defending Bron. In fact, Sharpe even attacked Udoka for his failed relationships while discussing the topic. However, he was self-aware enough to admit that he went extremely low with his comments.

“When they go low, I go the basement. Michelle Obama say they go low, we go high; I go to the basement. I go to hell,” Sharpe admitted.

What was the altercation that took place between LeBron James and Ime Udoka?

During the final quarter of the action-packed contest, LeBron James and Ime Udoka were seen conversing with each other. At no point did anyone believe that the matter would escalate. However, both the involved parties were hit with technical fouls by the nearby referee.

The entire basketball world tried speculating about what the conversation between the two could possibly be. Days after the incident, a social media user on X (formerly “Twitter”) revealed the leaked audio.

Udoka: “Stop crying like b*tches, man.”

LeBron: “We’re all grown men, that b*tch word ain’t cool.”

Udoka: “Soft a** boy, stop b*tching. Acting like you’re gonna do something.”

Ultimately, it was the 38-year-old superstar who got the final laugh. Even though the Rockets did play extremely well in the final two periods of the clash, the Purple & Gold ended up grabbing a 107-97 win.