LeBron James on his relationship with Jeanie Buss: ‘I thought it was cool. But, you know, some might see it another way.’
It’s been a week for the Los Angeles Lakers.
On the court there was a comeback win against the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday, followed by a loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Thursday night in which coach JJ Redick said his team didn’t trust each other on the court. In between was a lengthy ESPN exposé on the controversial family drama involving Lakers governor and minority owner Jeanie Buss and her siblings. The report also showed that Buss had soured on James’ power within the franchise and had a negative view of the superstar’s perceived ingratitude for drafting his son, Bronny. Buss refuted that particular claim in a statement to The Athletic.
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So you can imagine the series of questions James faced from reporters after Thursday’s 112-104 loss to the Clippers.
When asked what he thought of his collaboration with Buss, James said: “I thought it was cool. But, you know, someone might see it another way. There’s always two sides of a coin.”
Before that, James told the group of reporters in the locker room that the story had not affected him.
“I frankly don’t care about the articles. I really don’t,” James said. “I don’t care about stories, I don’t care about podcasts and all that kind of shit. That doesn’t bother me. … I don’t care what other people think of me. If you know me personally, then you know what I’m about.”
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Earlier this month, James’ agent and longtime friend Rich Paul caused a stir on his podcast when he said the Lakers should deal Austin Reaves before the trade deadline. James distanced himself from those comments last week.
As for his relationship with Buss, James gave a quizzical look when asked if the two had cleared things up after ESPN’s report.
“We never talk. I don’t understand,” James said. “It’s not like Jeanie and I have been on the phone talking. You guys have never heard a news story about this. Don’t make anything out of it that isn’t. It’s always been mutual, there’s always been respect, it’s always been a great partnership.”