O’Shea Jackson Jr. Joins Fans to Defend LeBron James after Stephen A. Smith Slanders His Ring Culture Opinion

Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James questioned the media's perspective of placing importance of championships over a player's greatness.

O’Shea Jackson Jr. Joins Fans to Defend LeBron James after Stephen A. Smith Slanders His Ring Culture Opinion

O'Shea Jackson Jr. lambasts Stephen A. Smith for his take on LeBron James (Image via FirstSportz)

Despite giving 22 elite seasons to the sport of basketball, LeBron James has his own share of critics. Ever since he claimed to be the GOAT, the likes of Stephen A. Smith and Skip Bayless have amped up their criticism of the Los Angeles Lakers superstar.

James has been on a run over the past few years calling out the extreme criticism he and his peers have faced whenever they try to undermine Smith and Bayless’ favorite player’s era. They, along with several older media members, have vehemently defended Michael Jordan and the past eras as being better than what the sport is today.

On numerous occasions, those ‘old media heads’ have undermined the Lakers’ superstar’s accolades, citing that he has played longer than anyone. The same mood was followed by Stephen A. Smith when he was responding to James’ ring culture opinion.

If it didn’t mean much or shouldn’t mean much, well then, why were you so relieved to finally have one? Why did you depart Cleveland to go to Miami? Why did you go back to Cleveland?

Stephen A. Smith said on First Take

Stephen A. Smith continued to say that LeBron James moved teams because he was ring chasing, as he knew that without them, he was not going to be seen as one of the greatest. The ESPN analyst believes this new stance from the Lakers star is because he is losing out on the GOAT race.

O’Shea Jackson Jr. and Fans believe Stephen A. Smith got it wrong with LeBron James

After listening to this segment of First Take, Hollywood star O’Shea Jackson Jr. reminded Stephen A. Smith of his own recent take on championships, where the ESPN analyst had undermined Giannis Antetokounmpo by labeling him as an underachiever.

Fans pointed out that Smith’s suggestion that Allen Iverson not winning a ring was due to the lack of pieces around him exactly resonates with what James said in his podcast. They believe the 57-year-old, blinded by his ‘hate’ towards the Los Angeles Lakers superstar, did not get the crux of what James was talking about. Check out examples of those reactions below.

Fans believe LeBron James was alluding to the fact that many tend to discredit players based on their lack of championships. Moreover, he also suggested that members of the media placed too much importance on rings instead of on how great the player is.

Fans saw this as Smith not being able to grasp what the Lakers superstar said, and instead went on to invariably defend Jordan’s GOAT status. Considering how the analyst has been in the news lately, it seems fans have been paying attention to what he is trying to say.

Stephen A. Smith believes sans championships LeBron James would not have the wealth he has accumulated

Stephen A. Smith does not hide his resentment for LeBron James. He usually tries to keep the discussion objective when it comes to factual matters. However, whenever an opinion comes to the fore, the analyst usually goes on the attack, bringing in other facets, just to make his point.

Stephen A. Smith believes LeBron James would not be a billionaire without championship rings
Stephen A. Smith believes LeBron James would not be a billionaire without championship rings (Image via Open Source/X)

Once upon a time, Windy, you know this, the endorsement dollars, the sizzle, the shine, and all the monetary compensation that came your way, because it was courtesy of championships. You weren’t getting that kind of shine when you weren’t winning. If you didn’t win anything, it wasn’t coming to you like that.

Stephen A. Smith said on First Take

Smith mentioned this while he slammed James for talking about the ring culture. He believes that without the 4 NBA titles, James would not have earned all the hundreds of millions he has amassed. The analyst believes none of that would have happened if James had not understood the importance and chasing after rings.

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