As a highly regarded player in NBA history, it didn’t come as a surprise whenLeBron James led the Los Angeles Lakers to victory over the Detroit Pistons. However, the legend’s means of celebration caused a few eyebrows to raise. Particularly, former professional basketball player, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
When James scored against the Detroit-based team, he broke out into the infamous dance popularized by Sam Cassell known as the “big balls” move. Originating in 1994 following the release of the second movie in the Major League film franchise, the dance showcases a celebratory player grabbing their downstairs regions and boastfully promoting their win.
While some people found nothing wrong with the champion letting loose, others found the gesture obscene. A more notable opponent of James’ action was Kareem 74-year-old Abdul-Jabbar, a former Los Angeles Laker. In a SubStack commentary video, Jabbar shared his thoughts on the matter.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar shares in reference to LeBron James, ‘GOATs don’t dance.’
“For me, winning is enough. Why do you need to do a stupid, childish dance and disrespect the other team on the court?” Jabbar questioned. Then, the former Hall of Famer went on to share the bold sentiments, “It doesn’t make sense. GOATs don’t dance.”
On top of the explicit dance, the basketball player has been under scrutiny for getting into a physical altercation with Isaiah Stewart. In addition, his false positive test for COVID-19 has been making media headlines. Considering these other factors, the “big balls” dance has largely been swept under the rug.
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The Los Angeles Laker didn’t have much commentary to make on Abdul-Jabbar’s sentiments, James has been outspoken about other controversies he’s found himself in over the last few weeks. After he received a one-game suspension for hitting Stewart in the face, the athlete had no problems admitting to the public that he thought his consequence was “bulls***.”
Even this expression of emotion earned him a slap on the wrist from the National Basketball Association. After using the curse word to describe what he thinks of his suspension, the NBA issued a warning for “using profane language during media availability in response to league imposed discipline.”
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