*This NBA/China situation is a doozy and appears to be quicksand to anyone that steps in it. The latest to find out is LA Lakes superstar LeBron James.
On Monday, James spoke out about the Daryl Morey tweet that sparked an international incident. He says the Rockets GM simply “wasn’t educated” about China before he posted his pro-Hong Kong tweet.
“I think that’s another situation that should stay behind closed doors,” LeBron told the media.
And just like Morey’s tweet/comments had repercussions, James reminded, so did his. In fact, Hong Kong democracy protesters are FURIOUS at James for speaking out against Daryl Morey … and they’re burning his jersey in the streets.
OK, that means LeBron’s name is mud … to the protesters, but the Chinese government should be happy with his comments. After all, he’s calling out Morey for what he says was a selfish tweet.
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“We all talk about this freedom of speech. Yes, we all do have freedom of speech, but at times there are ramifications for the negative that can happen when you’re not thinking about others and you’re only thinking about yourself,” LeBron said.
“I don’t want to get into a word or sentence feud with Daryl Morey but I believe he wasn’t educated on the situation at hand, and he spoke. And, so many people could have been harmed, not only financially but physically, emotionally, spiritually. So, just be careful what we tweet and what we say, and what we do. Even though yes, we do have freedom of speech, but there can be a lot of negative that comes with that too.”
When questioned about why he thinks Morey — who had tweeted out “Fight For Freedom. Stand with Hong Kong” — is uneducated, LeBron had this to say:
“That’s just my belief. I don’t know. That’s my belief. That’s all I can say. I believe he was either misinformed or not really educated on the situation.”
“And, if he was, then so be it, but I have no idea. That’s just my belief that when you say things or do things and you know the people can be affected by it, and the families and the individuals and everyone that can be affected by it, sometimes things can be changed. And, also sometimes social media is not always the proper way to go about things as well. But, that’s just my belief.”
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After LeBron made the comments, there was immediate backlash on social media from people upset with his comments. LeBron went to Twitter to defend himself.
“Let me clear up the confusion,” LeBron said … “I do not believe there was any consideration for the consequences and ramifications of the tweet. I’m not discussing the substance. Others can talk About that.”
“My team and this league just went through a difficult week. I think people need to understand what a tweet or statement can do to others. And I believe nobody stopped and considered what would happen. Could have waited a week to send it.”
Dang, this is messy.
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