In 2014, Michael Malone was fired from the head coach position of the Sacramento Kings. He was hired in 2013 but ended his first season 28-54, one of the worst in the league. Then, when he started his second season 11-13, the franchise was not ready to take any more chances. And as surprising as it might sound in present-day scenario, it was none other than LeBron James who defended Malone. “A good friend of mine got fired in Sacramento. (The Kings) didn’t know what they were doing with Mike Malone,” LeBron James said in 2015, as reported at the time by Marc J. Spears. Understandable. After all,  Malone was an assistant coach with the Cavaliers from 2005 to 2010, during which LeBron made his first NBA finals in 2007. Even in 2020, the two poured respect on each other.

“I never tried to be his buddy, I wasn’t trying to kiss his a**…And I think he always respected that deep down inside that I at least had the courage to coach him and not try to not coach him. I think all great players deep down inside want that,” Malone had said about coaching LeBron. The Lakers star, giving his flowers, had said during the 2020 Western Conference finals, “I know how much Coach (Malone) put into our schemes, put into our productivity, put into what we needed to do to go out and win ballgames when we were together in Cleveland. I saw that.” Jump cut to the 2022-23 season, and things seemed to have become completely different between the two.

The two met in the Western Conference semifinals, and the Lakers went 4-0 against the Nuggets. After this, out of nowhere LeBron floated the idea of retirement, and that was, for good reasons, swept the media landscape. This did not sit well with Malone, as he complained that instead of focusing on the Nuggets’ and Nikola Jokic’s phenomenal performance, media is more fixated on James and the Lakers. It reached its boiling point when amid the Nuggets’ title win, Malone appeared on the Pat McAfee Show and took a subtle jab at LeBron, saying, “Speaking of the Lakers, I just want you guys to know this is breaking news—I’m thinking about retiring. Only kidding, only kidding.”

This time, ‘King James’ did not let it go and took to his Instagram to post his reply. And guess what, in the light of Malone’s shocking firing, that iconic reply, aged like a fine wine, resurfaced on X. Clapping back to Malone in that 2023 post, LeBron wrote, “In Europe for the last past few weeks minding my business and hear I’m on your mind that much huh??? mean guess see why. But Wave the flag on these lames!! Please make being player cool again cause the lame machine is at an all-time high. Enjoy your light but just know I’m the SUN. stay on forever!”

At the time, it felt like typical NBA shade. But now, with Malone packing up and the 21x All-Star still rocking the purple and gold, that caption hits way harder. The dude called himself the sun! And here we are—LeBron’s still burning bright while Malone’s light got cut.

And if you’re wondering what helped push Malone out the door, look no further than Denver’s defense—or lack of it. Nikola Jokic is usually the calmest guy on the court, but even he’s hit his limit. Per The Athletic, the three-time MVP has grown tired of Denver’s shaky defense—and honestly, who could blame him?

Despite hanging near the top of the West, the Nuggets rank 20th in defensive rating. That’s not just bad—it’s playoff-risk bad. Every other team in that range is already out of the race. Denver’s the odd one. Look no further than during Malone’s final 2 weeks orchestrating. ‘The Mile High City’ ended up losing quite important games to the T-Wolves and Dubs. But that wasn’t all. They even accepted defeats in matchups that were textbook wins! Think the Spurs game at home.

And here’s the kicker: Jokic has been putting up insane numbers this month—45 points, 12.3 rebounds, 10.7 assists. But guess what? They’ve still lost four straight. It’s like watching someone drop a triple-double on Hall of Fame mode and still catch an L.

The Nuggets sit at fourth for now, but just barely. One rough stretch (a half game, folks!), and they’re in play-in territory. They haven’t missed the playoffs since 2018, but with Malone gone, this defense has to shape up—fast. But while the Nuggets are scrambling to hold onto a playoff spot, LeBron James is out here showing the league how it’s done at 40.

LeBron James shares his intense training regime

LeBron James isn’t just surviving in Year 22—he’s torching the league like it’s 2013. The man’s averaging 24.5 points a night, outscoring Steph and trailing Dame by a sliver. And he’s doing it at 40. If that doesn’t make you shake your head in disbelief, I don’t know what will.

The caption calling himself the Sun? Yeah, makes perfect sense now. Most players are fading by this age, and LeBron’s still shining so brightly that others need shades! So how’s he pulling this off? It’s not luck. On the Mind The Game podcast with Steve Nash, Bron broke down his offseason grind, and trust me—it’s not for the lazy.

He’s in the gym five days a week. “When I’m super locked in, I’m in there five days a week, Monday through Friday. Saturday is a recovery day where I do absolutely nothing. Sunday is more of a get the body work done, get my mind ready for the long week again,” James said.

“Monday is usually the toughest day. You’re coming off the weekend, two-day weekend. It’s usually the most strenuous day. Tuesday is a lot of running but a lot of just catching, shooting, getting your legs back under you. Then hump day is Wednesday. Once you get over that Wednesday, the rest of the week is pretty, y’know, ’cause that middle of the week is always challenging,” he further elaborated.

Bron’s workouts mix three days of lifting with two focused on band work, mobility drills, and straight skill-sharpening. And he keeps it rolling for 8 to 10 weeks leading into the season. Look, dudes half his age are trying to catch up. Meanwhile, LeBron’s out here reminding everyone—he is the sun. And let’s just say Michael Malone was the Icarus this time.