“LeBum, you’ll never beat Jordan” – LeBron James heckled by salty Knicks fans during Lakers star’s New York visit

The Knicks fan base is living up to its notorious reputation, as they were seen heckling LeBron James on Sunday. Following an incident where they threw trash at a Pacers fan during the Eastern Conference Finals, Knicks fans continued their unruly behavior during the LA star’s visit to New York.

The video posted by TMZ on X (formerly Twitter) showed a group of Knicks fans trash-talking James outside the Fanatics Fest. The clip was shared with a short caption summarizing the incident.

“EXCLUSIVE: #LeBronJames had to deal with some salty fans outside a New York City event Saturday night … with angry pedestrians hurling insults at the basketball legend,” TMZ wrote.

In the clip, fans can be seen crowding around James' entourage as they hurled insults at the four-time NBA champion. Expressing their hate towards him, one fan in particular went off, calling him names and claiming he could never be Jordan.

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"Get out of here, LeBron, go back to LA! Don't come to New York with that s*it. Boo, LeBum, you'll never beat Jordan or Kobe," the fan remarked.

Even though LeBron James left the Eastern Conference in 2019 to join the Lakers, he continues to occupy a prominent place in the minds of Knicks fans. During his time with the Cavaliers and Heat, he had a successful track record against New York.

In his 61 regular-season games against them, he has averaged 26.7 points, 7.4 rebounds and 7.4 assists per game. Additionally, he famously eliminated the Knicks from the playoffs with the Heat on his way to winning his first NBA title.

LeBron James asked to continue hooping by streamer Kai Cenat during Fanatics Fest: "You can't retire."

Despite receiving a fair share of hate from the New York crowd on Sunday, LeBron James was shown love by many, including Brooklyn native Kai Cenat. The streamer appeared on the live episode of 'The Shop' alongside Tom Brady, Victor Wembanyama and host LeBron James at the Fanatics Fest and showed his appreciation for the LA star.

During the episode, Cenat urged LBJ to continue playing before giving him an ultimatum.

"Imma just say it, Bron, you cannot retire gang, you can't retire. I can't imagine. From my perspective, I am 23 bro, you've been there the whole time it'll be weird," he declared.

LeBron James will enter his 23rd year in the NBA during the 2025-26 season. He is expected to re-sign with the Lakers as he hopes to win another championship alongside Luka Doncic.

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About the author

Arian Kashyap

Arian Kashyap is a basketball journalist at Sportskeeda with over two years of experience at Essentially Sports and Spice Bite and a Bachelor's in Physical Education and Sports Sciences.

Arian's favorite team is the Miami Heat and it’s mainly down to Dwyane Wade being his favorite player of all time. Arian loved how explosive Wade was as a player and he had all the attributes, whether that be shooting, defending or passing. Arian really liked how he won titles both with and without a dynasty behind him.

Arian has also worked with Bhaichung Bhutia Football Schools and was the manager for a Delhi-based women’s team called Garwhal Untied. Garwhal won the Delhi league and were runners-up during his tenure.

Arian has judged essay writing competitions for the Commonwealth Students Welfare Group of India in 2023 and was a part of the U-14 team for the Bhaichung Bhutia Football Schools academy that qualified for the AIFF Round in 2023.

When not working or watching sports, Arian likes riding his motorcycle and reading.

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