For years, Skip Bayless has been vocal in his criticism of LeBron James, often questioning his place as the greatest player in NBA history. His relentless stance caught the attention of former NBA star Gilbert Arenas, who finally had enough. In response, Arenas called out Bayless, challenging his arguments. However, this didn’t land well with the American sports columnist, who then challenged him to a 1 vs. 1 showdown. And what did Arenas have to say?

Arenas wasn’t one to back down. In a video that quickly made waves, he accepted Bayless’s challenge. His words were clear: he wasn’t afraid to face off with the man who had spent so long doubting LeBron’s greatness. In fact, he even told him his game plan too. He stated that he would dismantle all of Bayless’ claims and called it his “little rollout plan”. Bayless, excited by the challenge, shared his anticipation for the upcoming debate, teasing the possibility of a live discussion. But Arenas wasn’t done just yet.

He made another move that left Bayless scrambling: a live video in which he dismantled many of Bayless’ claims, particularly his adoration of Michael Jordan. Arenas didn’t hesitate to break down Bayless’ arguments, even playing a clip from Jordan’s 1990 All-Star 3-point contest, among other things, to prove his point.

In response, Bayless posted a video acknowledging Arenas’s efforts. “A week ago, Gilbert Arenas responded to me about LeBron in a two and a half hour floor show that he posted. I watched the entire thing, and I was impressed,” Bayless said. He continued, praising Arenas’ basketball IQ and research, saying, “Again and again it was, gotcha skip, gotcha again skip.” For a moment, it seemed like the rivalry might calm down, with Bayless offering a rare compliment to Arenas.

Gilbert Arenas, taking the high road, shared Bayless’ video on his Instagram, thanking him for the praise. “Appreciate the compliment,” Arenas wrote, “sometimes my research goes over people’s heads and they think I’m just TROLLING.” However, it seems Arenas didn’t watch the entire video. Toward the end, the 73-year-old stated, “Gilbert, as I sit here on the first day of the month, I want to publicly admit: you got me. You made me look bad. You won. April Fools.” So turns out it was Bayless who was trolling in the end. But here’s the interesting part. He ended up posting the video on March 31 instead of April 1. Other than that, it was a perfect plan.

Skip Bayless once again fires shots at LeBron James

Well, is all this finally going to stop Bayless from criticizing LeBron? That does not seem to be the case. He is now back on criticizing LeBron, and this time, it’s for the latter confronting Stephen A. Smith. King James finally opened up about him confronting Smith over the latter’s comments on his son, Bronny.

LeBron James has always been vocal about his need to protect his family, especially his son. “Never would I ever not allow people to talk about the sport, criticize players about what they do on the court… When you take it and you get personal with it, it’s my job to not only protect my damn household, but protect the players,” he said.

But is that instinct of protection crossing a line? Recently, Skip Bayless called out LeBron’s desire to shield Bronny from media criticism. Bayless questioned, “Is your son an NBA player or is he not?” He argued that if Bronny is wearing an NBA uniform, he should be open to the same critiques as anyone else.

But here’s the real question: Should LeBron step back and let Bronny face the media without interference? On one hand, it’s natural for a father to want to defend his son. But on the other hand, Bronny is now in the big leagues. Shouldn’t he be prepared for the same scrutiny as every other player? It would be interesting to know what Areanas has to say about this one.