Skip Bayless is ready to stand up and duke it out with anyone who challenges him on his views. Even someone like three-time NBA All Star Gilbert Arenas. The famed analyst was called out by Hibachi on a recent edition of his Gil’s Arena podcast, which provoked a sharp response from him.
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Arenas slammed Skip for his non-stop criticism of LeBron James. “If you’re going to be a fan of a player and his greatness, just be a fan of greatness itself,” Gil famously stated. Now, Bayless has responded to Gil’s finger-pointing on the latest edition of his YouTube show.
Responding to Gibby’s criticism, Skip claimed on the show, “I’ve never been anything but fair and honest in my assessment of LeBron James.” LeBron fans would certainly take this statement with a pinch of salt, in view of some of his past statements about the L-Train.
But Skip went on to remind his audience—and Gil—that he’s constantly praised James throughout his 22-year career, even referring to him as a “bullet train of a freight train” when driving the rock.
However, Bayless also revisited some of his earliest LBJ viewpoints during his Arenas rebuttal. He knocked James for his inability to shoot the three-ball in late-game situations, and slammed him for his inefficiency at the free-throw line.
He also credited Ray Allen and Kyrie Irving for keeping LBJ from being 2-8 in the Finals due to the big shots they hit in 2012 and 2016.
Like most times when Skip’s talking about LBJ, the subject of Michael Jordan too, came up.
He said that during his time at the Chicago Tribune, he was welcomed to speak ill about MJ because “against the grain” media coverage was encouraged. “I wouldn’t have gotten fired for criticizing Michael Jordan,” stated Skip. “I would have gotten a raise.” If he still didn’t do it, it was because MJ “was the greatest ever”.
Skip’s main point to Gil was that he watched more NBA games than anybody else to properly assess players, even calling it an “addiction.” He challenged the now-retired star to debate him in person so he could see how equipped he was to discuss the subject, particularly James and his inadequacies.
Is Bayless’ criticism of LeBron fair?
The problem with Skip’s claim that he’s “fair to LeBron” is that it’s just an act to drive viewers to his show or listeners to his pod, which is the point that Arenas was making. These statements sounds exaggerated for that very purpose.
For instance, Skip has famously stated that James lacked the “clutch gene,” and it was this very thing that removed LBJ for him from GOAT conversations. But is Skip right in his assessment?
LeBron fans would immediately point out—and rightly—that James has had more game-winning shots than one can count in his 20-plus-year career. They would also cite his block against Andre Iguodala in the 2016 Finals nail-biter against the Warriors, which is considered one of the greatest plays in NBA history, proving LeGOAT’s clutch on both sides of the ball.
Bayless also called James and the Lakers 2020 NBA Finals victory a “Mickey Mouse” win because it was played behind closed doors and without fans in the stands. Yet a large number of NBA stars have admitted that despite living on a resort, the “isolation” was difficult for their mental health. One could argue that 2020 was one of the hardest postseasons in NBA history due to the circumstances.
A Gil vs. Skip live debate could be fun. Gil does know the ball and his growth as a podcaster would make for an entertaining back-and-forth with Skip. On the other hand, Bayliss is the master of the art of coming up with headline-grabbing quotes.
But in the end, when it comes to LeBron James, there’s that impenetrable stats wall. “Enjoy it…cause we’re never gonna see this type of dominance again,” Gil said about LBJ’s historic NBA run. It’s hard to argue.
