LeBron James Is Trending After Decking South Sudan Player At Olympics
Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James and Team USA picked up their second win of the 2024 Paris Olympics after a 103-86 win over South Sudan on Wednesday afternoon.
Going into the game, Team USA was 1-0 in Olympic play after defeating Nikola Jokic and Serbia 110-84 over the weekend.
At the 8:54 mark of the fourth quarter, LeBron and Team USA had a 75-58 lead. After a South Sudan player missed a shot, James grabbed the rebound and started sprinting down the court.
As LeBron advanced past half-court, he lowered his head and barreled into defender Marial Shayok, sending him crashing to the floor.
The refs blew the whistle and called a foul on Shayok, but the call could have easily been assessed to LeBron for a charge.
After the play, NBA fans left their thoughts on LeBron trucking Shayok on social media.
LeBron is playing in his fourth Olympics, winning a gold medal in Beijing (2008) and London (2012). James also won a bronze medal at the 2004 Athens Olympics.
The four-time NBA champion has started every game for Team USA so far in Paris. Against Serbia, he scored 21 points on 9-of-13 shooting while also recording seven rebounds and nine assists.
Against South Sudan, LeBron didn’t quite have the same statistics, but still played well, notching 12 points, six rebounds, and five assists.
James is joined on Team USA by his Lakers teammate, Anthony Davis. This event also marks the first time he has played with Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry.