NBA

3 Takeaways From LeBron James Interview With Pat McAfee

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Dan Girolamo
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Dan Girolamo Sports Editor

Dan is a multifaceted content creator who specializes in sports, pop culture, and entertainment. His entertainment work has been featured on Digital Trends, where he has interviewed Brendan Fraser, Jamie Lee Curtis, Alison Brie, Adam DeVine, Sadie Sink, Chris O'Dowd, Machine Gun Kelly, and Frank Grillo. Dan's entertainment work has also been featured on Coming Soon, Hidden Remote, and WatchMojo. Dan's other passion in life revolves around sports, graduating from Marist College with a degree in Sports Communication and Journalism. From columns about the latest in New York sports to gambling predictions, Dan continues to find success in written and broadcast journalism. Previous written work can be found at Unafraid Show, while broadcast clips can be seen on WAVE.tv and CBS Sports.

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Published26 Mar 2025

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LeBron James and Pat McAfee talk together.

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James sat down for an interview with Pat McAfee on Wednesday’s episode of The Pat McAfee Show. Here were the three biggest takeaways.

LeBron James Shares What He Thinks About Stephen A. Smith & Brian Windhorst

James made his first public comments after confronting Stephen A. Smith during the middle of a Lakers’ game a few weeks back.

James was unhappy with Smith’s comments about his son, Bronny, and how he’s only in the league because his father is one of the greatest NBA players ever.

Smith has gone on to speak about the confrontation on First Take and various podcasts, which James poked fun at.

“He’s like on a Taylor Swift tour run right now,” James told McAfee. “It started off with, ‘I didn’t wanna address it. I didn’t wanna address it. I wasn’t going to address it, but since the video came out, I feel the need to address it.’ Are you, are you kidding me? If there’s one person that couldn’t wait for the video to drop so you could address it, it’s your ass. Like seriously?”

James explained how Smith “missed the whole point,” saying that the media can criticize players for their actions on the court. However, James took offense to Smith’s comments about how he needed to step in as a father and “stop this.”

“When you take it and you get personal with it, it’s my job to not only protect my damn household, but protect the players,” James said.

James also called out ESPN’s Brian Windhorst for being “weird.”

“I seen Brian Windhorst on one of these shows not too long ago,” James said. “This guy was saying he’s like my f— best friend. These guys are just weird.”

Windhorst, who is seven years older than James, is also from Akron and went to the same high school as “The King.”

Lebron James Says Giannis Antetokounmpo Would Dominate In The 1970s

In the never-ending debate between eras, James said that everyone needs to “respect all eras” of basketball. However, James did add some fuel to the fire by saying Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo would dominate 50 years ago.

“You trying to tell me Giannis [Antetokounmpo] wouldn’t be able to play a NBA game in the 70s?” James said. “Giannis Antetokounmpo would have 250 points in a game in the 70s. 250.”

Unsurprisingly, many media members took offense to James’ comments, including Chris “Mad Dog” Russo, who vented his frustrations on First Take.

“To LeBron: Has he heard of Julius Erving? Giannis is not as good as Julius Erving,” Russo said. “If Julius Erving, who was on the Sixers in the 70s… Do you think Julius Erving scored 250 points in a game or averaged 50 a game?”

LeBron James Talks Relationship With Michael Jordan

When McAfee asked about his relationship with Michael Jordan, James admitted the two greats were in a “good spot.” However, they don’t talk because James is still in the NBA.

“We don’t talk,” James said. “Because I’m still playing. I’m still playing, I’m still focused on my craft right now.”

James hopes his relationship with Jordan can grow once he retires. James cited how his relationship with the late Kobe Bryant improved after the latter retired in 2016.

“That’s when our relationship became really, really good,” said James. “He welcomed me. He called me, like, ‘Bro, anything you need in L.A., I got you. You’re a Laker now. You’re family.’ And we would have multiple conversations. Obviously, you guys saw him coming to a lot of games. … And when I passed him for the scoring record in Philly, he had a tweet out there like, ‘Keep on going.’ Like, ‘Keep transcending the game. Keep going.’ And that s— meant so much to me.”