LeBron James had some coarse words for reporters on the back of his team’s victory over the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday night. The Los Angeles Lakers superstar is usually the one fielding the questions, but he had one for members of the press following the 128-109 win.
“I got one question for you guys before you guys leave,” he said in quotes transcribed by The Athletic. “I was thinking when I was on my way over here, I was wondering why I haven’t gotten a question from you guys about the Jerry Jones photo.
“When the Kyrie [Irving] thing was going on, you guys were quick to ask us questions about that. When I watch Kyrie talk and he says, ‘I know who I am, but I want to keep the same energy when we’re talking about my people and the things that we’ve been through,’ and that Jerry Jones photo is one of those moments that our people, Black people, have been through in America.
“And I feel like as a Black man, as a Black athlete, as someone with power and a platform, when we do something wrong, or something that people don’t agree with, it’s on every single tabloid, every single news coverage, it’s on the bottom ticker. It’s asked about every single day.
“It seems like to me that the whole Jerry Jones situation and photo, and I know it was years and years ago and we all make mistakes, I get it. But it seemed like it’s been buried under. It happened. We just move on. I was disappointed I haven’t received that question from you guys.”
The photo in question is one showing Jones as a teenager standing with a group of white classmates attempting to prevent six black students from entering a school in Arkansas back in 1957.
Jones has since denied involvement, insisting he was only there as a curious onlooker.
