Doug Gottlieb believes LeBron James should focus on more important matters than criticizing him. Over the weekend, while the four-time NBA MVP was reportedly too banged up to participate in the All-Star Game, he still found time to mock Gottlieb on social media, taking aim at the Wisconsin-Green Bay head coach for not winning a game in over three months.
“Earned 2 Not Given! Gotta give him credit though!” James added, posting a series of crying laughing and poop emojis, prompting many to connect the dots to previous comments made by Gottlieb about Bronny James.
Earned 2 Not Given! Gotta give him credit though! 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣. 💩 💩 💩 💩 💩 https://t.co/khxpnlvUY1
— LeBron James (@KingJames) February 17, 2025
James’ post seemed initially puzzling; however, it quickly became apparent that it was a jab at Gottlieb’s previous skepticism about Bronny James starting for Wisconsin-Green Bay, expressed last summer in a national broadcast. Though Gottlieb didn’t address the tweet directly on X, he responded during a call into Fox Sports Radio, questioning James’ motives for targeting him on a Monday holiday following the All-Star break.
“I don’t think it speaks well for somebody who — like, don’t you have the day off?” Gottlieb inquired. “Don’t you have better things to do? My response is: Colin [Cowherd] told me a long time ago, ‘Don’t punch down. Always punch up.’ So me talking trash to him would technically be punching up. And him, it’s punching down. I guess pettiness and insecurity aren’t limited to just people who aren’t super successful in their field. It just doesn’t make any sense. Why on a Presidents’ Day Monday, when you have the day off, are you worried about me? I’m not really sure.”
Gottlieb further commented, “I don’t even know what I’m responding to other than LeBron talking ish to me. Is it because I didn’t think Bronny should be a McDonald’s All-American? Or that he should have been an NBA draft pick? OK. That’s my job, to give a sports opinion.”
@foxsportsradio Doug Gottlieb Reacts To LeBron James Trolling Him Earlier Today. #lebron #lebronjames #lebronjames23 #losangeleslakers #laker #bronnyjames #douggottlieb #douggottliebshow #nbaallstar #nba #danbeyer #monsebolanos ♬ original sound – Fox Sports Radio
While one might accuse Gottlieb of not being able to take what he dishes out, there’s merit to his argument that James’ post was unexpected. Gottlieb is merely one of many commentators critical of Bronny James’ place on the Los Angeles Lakers, with his most significant remarks occurring over seven months ago. Unlike fellow skeptics such as Stephen A. Smith and Charles Barkley, however, Gottlieb is the head coach of a Division I team that is currently struggling. Thus, James chose to take the opportunity to fire back, something he wasn’t prepared to do during the All-Star Game in San Francisco.
