Stephen A Smith isn’t the only ESPN personality in LeBron James’ crosshairs.
The longtime NBA superstar appeared on Wednesday’s episode of “The Pat McAfee Show” on ESPN, the same network who gainfully employs Smith, who James has been feuding with publicly in recent weeks.
And while James took aim at Smith during the interview, he also targeted Smith’s colleague, Brian Windhorst, with whom he has history.
“I’ve seen Brian Windhorst on one of these shows not too long ago,” James said before being interrupted by Pat McAfee, who just yelled “Windy” — Windhorst’s nickname — and added, “You guys played together in high school.”
Windhorst did attend St. Vincent-St. Mary’s high school and remained in Ohio as James became a national star in his teenage years before entering the 2003 NBA Draft.
James continued, “This guy who says he’s like my f–king best friend, these guys are just weird.”
Windhorst hosts “The Hoop Collective” podcast, which frequently features colleagues Tim MacMahon and Tim Bontemps.
“He [Windhorst] went on his show and said ‘Don’t let LeBron fool you, he wears No. 23 because of Michael Jordan.’ OK, that’s a fact,” James acknowledged.
“‘He signed with Nike because of Michael Jordan,’” James continued in a mocking tone. “It’s like, no the f–k I didn’t. I signed with Nike because I got a hell of a signing bonus and they gave me a seven-year, $90 million contract. And I moved my mom out of the hood the day after I signed that contract.”
He added, “And ultimately, my whole thing is like, what do I want to wear off the court? I wanna wear f–king Nikes.”
James and the Lakers play the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday night in hopes of snapping a three-game losing streak. Los Angeles sits fifth in the Western Conference, a half game behind the Grizzlies.
James returned from a groin injury on Monday after being sidelined for two weeks.
