From day one, I have always thought the criticism directed at LeBron James to be unprecedented, over-the-top and way too extreme. I’ve never seen an athlete under the microscope quite like this. Not even Alex Rodriguez’s coverage in New York a few years ago compares. Given all of that, LeBron should be cognizant of the fact that anything he does has the potential to go viral instantly.
On Sunday, the Buffalo Bills took on the Jets in New York (or, New Jersey). As you recall, a few years ago, then New York Giant Plaxico Burress accidentally shot himself in the leg with a gun that wasn’t registered, nor did he have license for. Long story short, he went to jail for nearly two years on weapons possession charges. Well, now Plax is a member of the Jets and is having a decent year.
During Sunday’s game, Buffalo’s wide receiver, Stevie Johnson caught a touchdown pass and a portion of his three-part choreographed TD celebration was him mocking Plaxico, by acting like he shot himself in the leg. I’m all for endzone celebrations because at the end of the day, this is all entertainment. But, I personally thought that he crossed the line and showed very bad taste. So did NFL Commissioner, Roger Goodell who fined Johnson $10K. In case you missed it:
Yesterday, LeBron and Kevin Durant squared-off in a flag football game in what will hopefully be the last extra-curricular thing any NBA player does this off-season (fingers crossed). During the game, which was streamed lived, LeBron caught an interception and returned it for a Pick-6 touchdown. Then he went into Steve Johnson-mode:
Now, I don’t think LeBron was mocking Plaxico Burress because what reason would he have to? He was just re-enacting Stevie Johnson mocking Plaxico. I get that. But he had to be aware of the fact that people thought Stevie’s celebration was out of line. Sure, it was just a flag football game and he was just having fun but he has to realize that the cameras are always rolling. Especially on him. On countless occasions, I’ve stated that most of what he gets criticized for is complete nonsense. But, I can’t jump to his defense here. He demonstrated very poor judgement and is getting beat-up for it on the internet today. The crazy thing is that if Kevin Durant did that, we probably never would’ve known about it.
If you’re looking for your everyday, predictable basketball talk, then go somewhere else, because Kevin Burke of The Kevin Burke Project brings provocative, thought provoking content about basketball as only he can. Kevin also hosts The Hoop Doctors weekly podcast show, which you can subscribe to for free on iTunes. Follow Kevin on Twitter and Facebook
