Apr 30, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) reacts during the first half in game five of first round for the 2025 NBA Playoffs at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Ex-Clippers Forward Clarifies LeBron James 'Diss'

Originally posted on Los Angeles Clippers on SI
By Grant Mona | Last updated May 23, 2025 1:23 PM ET

LeBron James has been the face of the NBA for over a decade and was at the forefront of why the Cavaliers returned to being a contender shortly after he was drafted. James has always been in the spotlight, going back to his early high school days. The term "generational prospect" gets thrown around a lot, but for James, it was certainly fitting.

Across James' four years at St. Vincent-St. Mary, James was 101-6, leading the school to three state championships and finishing with 2,657 points, 892 rebounds, and 523 total assists.

Initially, NBA players had mixed feelings about what LeBron James could bring to a franchise. Despite the immense hype surrounding him, some players believed it was premature to fully endorse him and preferred to take a wait-and-see approach rather than crown him too soon.

No wonder Darius Miles wasn't feeling it when asked about LeBron lol pic.twitter.com/PYtolTO1sx
— BK (@CryptoB_K) August 30, 2023

Former Clippers and Cavaliers forward Darius Miles went on "All The Smoke" to discuss his comments made one year before James joined his Cavaliers squad in 2003.

"That was a diss?," Miles said when asked by Stephen Jackson about the re-surfaced video.

"I was defending LeBron...it's never been a guy like that, especially outta high school, it's never been a guy that you put that much expectations on to just give a franchise to and just say he finna turn it around immediately like that," Miles continued.

Darius Miles sets the record straight on his LeBron James “diss”

ALL THE SMOKE with D-Miles is available on YouTube! pic.twitter.com/BkUJEWRjck
— All the Smoke (@allthesmokeprod) May 22, 2025

He continued to say that James and him developed a real friendship when they played together for the Cavaliers. "I knew LeBron. LeBron used to come over to my house, I'm at Thanksgiving dinner that year with LeBron...this is my guy."

The Cavaliers finished 35-47 in James's rookie season in 2003, a significant improvement over the previous season, when Cleveland finished 17-65.

This article first appeared on Los Angeles Clippers on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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