LeBron James is the best basketball player in the world and it might seem odd that he has engaged in repeated trash talk (both on the court and otherwise) with New York Knicks center Enes Kanter. However, the two players have exchanged pleasantries on more than one occasion and, at this point, Kanter is perhaps better known for his antics than he is for his actual, on-court contributions.
To that end, Kanter recently caught up with Royce Young of ESPN for a wide-ranging interview and, predictably, the subject of LeBron came up during the conversation.
And then it was the first game I was with the Knicks and then he came and before the game he said we should’ve drafted Dennis Smith Jr. And not just me, but most of our guys felt like it was disrespectful to Frank [Ntilikina] and we actually sat down with Frank and talked to him and said, “Hey you gotta step up for yourself, man.”
Then I was in the game and they were pushing each other and I’m like, “This is a 19-year-old kid against a 260-pound dude. This is not fair.” So I get in there and we were face-to-face and we trash-talked a little bit. After the game I called him “queen” or “princess” or whatever.
But I would do anything to take his focus away, distract him. People ask me, “Does it work?” No it does not work. But I’m trying.”
To Kanter’s (at least partial) credit, he seems to understand that poking the bear in the case of James is an ineffective strategy. One of James’ most famous foes is Lance Stephenson, who now plays alongside LeBron in Los Angeles, and that might leave Kanter as one of the more prominent ongoing beefs that the Lakers star actually has as the 2018-19 season approaches.
It would be wise to note that Kanter indicates that he’s still “trying” to get under LeBron’s skin and that could make for a bit of extra entertainment over the course of a long season. In addition, James and Kanter now play for teams in the country’s two largest markets so, if there is ever another issue between the pair, it is a safe bet that extensive coverage will be available.
(Via ESPN)
