LeBron James won his fourth championship with the Los Angeles Lakers, bringing him one step closer to catching NBA legends Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan, who have five and six rings, respectively.
However, James won his fourth ring in the “NBA Bubble,” a secluded campus meant to keep teams safe while the Covid-19 virus ravaged around the world. Now, a rival general manager in the NBA is calling into question the title’s legitimacy.
“Had the Rockets won the title, I absolutely would have celebrated it as legitimate, knowing the immense effort and resilience required. Yet, everyone I speak to around the league privately agrees that it doesn’t truly hold up as a genuine championship,” Philadelphia 76ers general manager Daryl Morey said, per The Athletic, who was with the Houston Rockets at the time.
“Perhaps the lasting legacy of the NBA bubble is that the NBA should be proud of its leadership at both the beginning and end of the pandemic, even though the champion will forever be marked by an asterisk.”
Fans reacted to Morey’s take on social media.
“Daryl Morey can’t talk about championships being fake when he can’t build a team that can’t get out the 2nd round,” one fan wrote on Twitter.
“He said it’s a fluke unless the rockets won it then it would’ve been real,” someone else wrote.
“The Lakers were the best team before the bubble Probably would have won it regardless,” another fan added.
It’ll be interesting to see if James or the Lakers respond to the comments.
About Qwame Skinner
Qwame Skinner has loved both writing and sports his entire life. In addition to his sports coverage at Comeback Media, Qwame writes novels, and his debut; The First Casualty, an adult fantasy, is out now.