With LeBron James Loyalty Under Threat, Shannon Sharpe Shuts Down Fans Attempt To Expose 12YO Claim

Throughout his 21-year-long ongoing NBA career, LeBron James has created a reputation as one of the greatest basketball players to walk the face of the earth. After all, not every professional athlete is a four-time championship winner, four-time MVP, and Finals MVP recipient, while leading the all-time scoring record. While consistently being a part of the GOAT debate, a former NFL legend has continued to endorse the player for the same. However, in a recent mess, he was called out online for not always maintaining his stance on LBJ.

A few hours ago, a social media user shared a screenshot of a tweet that the 3x Super Bowl winner had posted back in 2012. It featured him saying “Gr8est basketball players of all time God, Air Jordan & Kobe in that order. #golakers”. The remark was highlighted to rebut that Sharpe had not always considered LeBron James to be the only worthy holder of the GOAT title. This caused the 55-year-old to reply and state “How how many rings, MVPS, All NBA selections, final appearances, Allstar appearances, All defensive selections did Bron have at the time of that tweet. Tweet me bck with his current resume”. However, this wasn’t the first time he’s publicly gone after a critic.

Before clarifying the remarks that he had made 12 years ago, Sharpe had again placed a defense after a different X user made the unproven claim that “I heard Shannon was bought! To praise lebron”. This caused the former athlete to lash out and state “I receive the same amount as those that speak highly of MJ and Kobe. How much are we making?” And thus began the above-mentioned short-lived debate.

As Sharpe highlighted, LeBron James did not have as many accolades back in 2012 as he does today. Despite having played for the NBA for 9 years till then, he had only a single championship ring to his name. He was nowhere close to beating the All-Time Scoring record then held by Kareem Abdul Jabbar. While he had established a reputation as a great scorer, he was overshadowed when placed on the same pedestal, as 5x NBA champion Kobe Bryant was all the buzz in the early 2010s. Sharpe may have held a different opinion, but he seldom wavers from the firm one that he holds now for LeBron. In the past, he went to some hilarious extremes to show just how loyal he was to the 39-year-old!

Shannon Sharpe commemorated LeBron James’ achievement by donning a literal ‘GOAT’ mask!

Back in December 2023, Sharpe appeared on an episode of ‘First Take’ alongside renowned sportscaster Stephen A. Smith and television personality Molly Qerim. To commemorate LeBron receiving the MVP title during his first In-Season Tournament win, Sharpe showed up to the studio donning a ‘GOAT’ mask and holding a cigar to his mouth. This action resulted in Qerim letting out a giggle and Smith holding his hands to his face in a mix of amusement and embarrassment.

Sharpe highlighted his excitement over LeBron’s achievement by shouting, “You know who it is. It’s GOAT James. It’s GOAT James!” The former athlete only removed his face getup after Smith continued shouting “Take that off, man!”.

The GOAT debate is something where opinions continue to fluctuate from time to time. However, it is a heartwarming feeling to see Shannon Sharpe sending his flowers to just one individual, who continues to take a dominating stance amongst the young field of NBA players.

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