LeBron James, Los Angeles Lakers (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)
When you come at the King, you best not miss. LeBron James put Phoenix Suns point guard Cam Payne in his place on Friday night.
Friday night’s Lakers vs Suns game was all kinds of emotional. Rajon Rondo got a Suns fans ejected, and Dwight Howard and Anthony Davis got into a quarrel on the LA bench.
And then, there was the sideline commentary by Lakers star LeBron James. LBJ typically keeps to himself unless he’s really riled up. Cameron Payne said or did something near the sideline that achieved just that, and James was sure to let him know how he felt about the situation at hand.
James appeared to tell Payne to “stay humble,” with some media outlets reporting that LeBron told the Michigan State product that just over a year ago Payne was out of the league entirely. That, of course, was completely savage if true.
Lakers-Suns rivalry at an all-time high in 2021-22 season
The Suns defeated the Lakers in the first round of last year’s playoffs, and then Los Angeles added the likes of Russell Westbrook and Carmelo Anthony to rival last season’s Western Conference champions.
With the Suns’ win on Friday night, the Lakers fell to 0-2 on the season despite opening the year as the Western Conference favorites. Los Angeles has at least four future Basketball Hall of Famers in their rotation, if not more.
Expectations are high at Staples Center, and the Lakers cannot afford many more early-season losses.