Iman Shumpert is claiming LeBron James 'ruined' the game of basketball because of his decision to head to South Beach and play with the Miami Heat.
On the Bootleg Kev podcast, the host first suggests that it was Kevin Durant who 'ruined' the NBA with his decision to leave OKC for the star-studded Golden State Warriors. Shumpert, however, says James' did it first with his decision back in 2010 when he joined the Heat, alongside Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh.
“It wasn’t KD. It was LeBron first going to Miami. LeBron knows he ruined basketball," Shumpert said. "He thought he was making it better. Me personally, I loved the NBA for the loyalty that I thought was there. He basically knocked the fourth wall down.”
Shumpert, who was a former teammate of James' when they played for the Cleveland Cavaliers and won a ring with him in 2016, did give James some credit, calling his move to Miami a 'good business decision.'
'Great business move for sure. But when you think about it outside looking in, I got people tweeting me right now, they’re literally talking about owners and trade.”
When people on social media started to react to Shumpert's assertions against 'The King,' one fan on social media pointed out that superteams were around before Miami's Big 3. Shumpert wrote in response:
"Find me the year the top player left his throne and joined someone else? The closest thing was Shaq but Bigs have to pair up and Kobe was the juice. Bron had no need and had all the influence. I can debate this all day."
Another Twitter user told Shumpert that he essentially rode LeBron's coattails, in order to win a ring. He responded by telling the fan that 'he just saw the clip' of his comments on LeBron and 'not the whole conversation.'
“You saw the clip and not the convo. LeBron changed the way teams are built forever. Check the length of these contracts.”
Shumpert continued his tirade, calling out James for his tendency to flop in order to get to the charity stripe more frequently.
‘Bro, why you flopping?’” Shumpert said. “And literally, he started flopping cause he like, ‘Bro, I gotta get these free throws if these people getting free throws.’ He like, ‘Bro, I’m really getting hit.’ So he like, ‘Ah, I’ll sell it for you cause they can’t see it cause I’m so strong. Y’all can’t see me getting fouled."
Whether you think LeBron changed the game of basketball for the positive or negative, his infamous decision to head to Miami certainly changed the course of the league, ushering in the player empowerment movement we see in the NBA.
Follow Jasper Jones on Twitter: @jonesj2342
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