Say it ain't so, LeBron! LeBron James was living on Cloud 9 following an Olympic gold medal win, but he brought one young fan's world crashing down.
Videos by Wide Open Country
James was on his way to the club to celebrate his victory. A young fan, definitely a kid, approached the athlete as he got out of the car. The fan was hoping to grab a quick photo with his hero. However, James was annoyed by the attempt. Rather than take a quick moment for a fan, the athlete put his hand up to stop the kid. "Stop, stop, stop," James said while putting his hand up. "Don't do that."
He clearly wasn't in the mood to be bothered. The young fan was shocked, and to make matters worse, James' security pushed the kid aside as James walked forward into the club. A couple of moments later, James stopped to greet and hug someone and danced in a much happier mood.
NEW: NBA star LeBron James is under fire for snapping at a young fan who asked for a picture after winning gold at the Olympics.
James was seen telling the kid ?stop? before he pulled off a dance move while entering the venue.
?Stop, stop, stop? he said to the kid.
James was? pic.twitter.com/VQj3Z9M8X8
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) August 11, 2024
LeBron James Draws Backlash
James drew backlash for the move. One person offered support, writing, "You all acting like he hasn't donated millions of dollars to schools, youth, and communities." But many people called out the athlete, "It's hilarious because it looked like he posed for a picture within 30 seconds of turning the kid down. These athletes don't owe anyone anything, but when a kid asks you to take a picture(they're a fan) and you rudely decline and move on to take another picture, bad look."
Another wrote, "Could be hurtful to a child too. I don't mind if it's an adult who gets turned down, but children are still developing mentally & emotionally & for a child, having someone you look up to just shit on you can be a hurtful & very embarrassing moment that could linger for years."
One person replied blaming the fan, "OR it may teach the child a valuable lesson to respect people's boundaries and no one owes him anything?"
Another offered this response about James, "No. It just taught the kid that many celebrities are a--holes. Who don't respect their fans. Hard lesson learned."
Yet another added, "LeBron seems like a terrible person. I lost all respect for him when he kneeled during our anthem after our country made him wealthy."
