As one of the world's premier superstar athletes, LeBron James often finds himself on the receiving end of criticism over his views on basketball, life, and the world of politics. MMA star Colby Covington became the most recent public figure to call him out and even went viral for calling James a "f***ing scumbag."
“I wanna ask LeBron, what does he mean by ‘There’s no party like a Diddy party’? Not only that, but I wanna ask how many Diddy parties he's been to," said Covington on media day. "LeBron you’re a f***ing scumbag and I hope you get locked up in the same cell with Diddy."
LeBron James has managed to avoid any serious controversies after 21 years in the NBA but his political views often incite anger in some of his biggest critics -- even if it wasn't meant to be controversial. In the case of Colby Covington, he's been a longtime hater of LeBron James and has gone to great lengths to try and smear his legacy.
In the past, Colby has called LeBron a coward, a communist, and even a "Chinese finger puppet." He's been vocal about his hatred for the King and about how he uses tricks to enhance his reputation.
In this latest quote, Colby is seemingly exposing LeBron for his apparent (and unconfirmed) connection to Diddy, who was recently arrested on sex trafficking charges. Diddy's infamous parties have become legendary in the community and anyone associated with them has been branded as partially complicit in his behavior.
LeBron doesn't have any personal connection to Diddy but he may have admitted to going to one of his parties in a resurfaced video that has gone viral online. Seemingly, many stars have attended the "Diddy" parties over the years, which may or may not have included illegal sex acts.
If James were ever caught participating in something like that, his entire reputation would essentially be shot and the image he's worked so hard to build over the past 20 years will almost immediately be washed away. Fortunately for James, that comment is the only connection he has to Diddy but it's still enough for some (like Colby Covington) to use it against LeBron's legacy.
As arguably LeBron's biggest hater, this won't be the last we hear from Covington on this subject but he shouldn't expect to get any response from LeBron. At this stage of his career, James has accomplished far too much to let one man's petty hatred get under his skin.
Instead, this season, LeBron is keeping his head down and taking care of business one game at a time. For those he can't win over with his superior work ethic, he'll win over with his sheer dominance on the court. But James doesn't really care either way because the only validation he needs is from himself.
With averages of 23.0 points, 9.1 assists, and 8.0 rebounds per game this season, LeBron is defying Father Time with every game and he's setting a new standard for individual greatness in the modern era.
In the meantime, he's also giving back to his community, supporting his family by helping them achieve their dreams and growing his empire in business and entertainment. At this point, it's no wonder why LeBron is unphased by all the hate and why he lets people like Colby Covington go off on his name with no response.
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