LA Lakers’ New Signee Has Old Beef With LeBron James

LeBron James is still leading the Lakers, but he might not have everyone on the same page before their first practice. The team just signed Kent Bazemore, and that could present an issue.

According to reports, Bazemore turned down an increased offer from the Warriors to join the Lake Show. That opportunity was hard to pass up, but he is betting on himself as The Athletic’s Shams Charania tweeted out.

“Bazemore turned down more money and years (two) from the Warriors, sources say, but believes he will have a bigger role and opportunity to win a championship with the Lakers. Bazemore is betting on himself.”

Bazemore took several shots at James in the past, dating back to his college ball days at Old Dominion. In 2016, Heavy’s Sean Deveney reported about Bazemore’s rivalry with King James.

“Bazemore has long had a chip against James, at least as far as Twitter goes. Tweets dug up from 2010, when Bazemore was at Old Dominion and still a long way from earning a starting spot on an Eastern Conference playoff team, show some pretty palpable disdain from the college-junior version of Bazemore — he called James some unprintable names, and repeatedly harped on the notion that James lacked the gumption to play well in the fourth quarter.”

“‘LeBron is equivalent to 7-11,’ he said in one relatively mild dig. ‘He doesn’t close.’”

Bazemore might have to scour his Twitter history a bit before joining the Lakers for their first practice. LeBron might not forget about those tweets, but he’s also likely more concerned about capturing another NBA Championship ring at the end of the season

Would you get past those mean tweets and play ball? Sound off in the comments!