LeBron James may be letting his time in Hollywood carry over into his actual profession these days.
On Sunday night at Staples Center, James put on quite the acting performance in the Lakers 121-114 loss to the Toronto Raptors.
During a second quarter layup attempt, James appeared to get hit in the head by Stanley Johnson of the Raptors. You can be the judge on whether the reaction from James was warranted, let alone if he was even touched:
Hope Lebron is okay from this awful hit. Hate to see players get hit like that. pic.twitter.com/1WIFUZK0yO
— Gracie (@graciemarx) May 3, 2021
It was a classic moment for James, as he repeatedly rubbed his head as if the contact, if there was any, caused him serious discomfort. The obvious flop seems to go against James’ comments on the act back in 2014, when he said, “I don’t flop, I don’t even know how to do it.”
The Daily Wire went back and looked at James’ history of flopping throughout his NBA career. Let’s see which ones made the cut.
March 2020 against the Memphis Grizzlies
This flop, with the Grizzlies Dillon Brooks guarding James, is some of the best acting you’ll ever see. Brooks grazes his chin before James decides to really sell the foul.
LeBron with the Oscar winning flop pic.twitter.com/NS88rkj7QZ
— Josiah Johnson (@KingJosiah54) March 1, 2020
November 2010 against the Phoenix Suns
In fairness to James, we see this exact play at least once in every NBA game. It’s a classic way to sell a foul, but that doesn’t make it any less of a flop.
March 2013 against the Indiana Pacers
Lance Stephenson and LeBron James have an interesting history. From Stephenson blowing in James’ ear, to sneaking into the Heat huddle in the 2014 playoffs, the two had a fun rivalry. Maybe James was just trying to add to it with this flop?
November 2012 against the Cleveland Cavaliers
This particular flop by James can possibly be excused by the seasoned NBA fan, but a flop is a flop. As James gets set to take the charge, Dion Waiters side steps to avoid the contact, with the ensuing contact being minimal. James hypothetically could have absorbed the contact, but once your mind is set on taking a charge, you’re usually going to sell it.
March 2011 against the Los Angeles Lakers
This flop occurred late in a tight game against the Lakers, making the act even more egregious. There’s nothing like a slight tap to the back of a 250 pound man to send him crashing to the floor.
May 2012 against the Indiana Pacers
Why do James’ flops always seem to come against the Pacers?
The worst part of this flop is that there was a good chance the Pacers would have been given possession of the ball. While David West does knock the ball away, it appears to last touch James’ hand on the way out of bounds.
Joe Morgan is the Sports Reporter for The Daily Wire. Most recently, Morgan covered the Clippers, Lakers and the NBA for Sporting News.
The views expressed in this piece are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.