Monday’s Hot Clicks: The Best Memes Reacting to LeBron’s Decision to Sign With the Lakers

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And then there were memes

By now you’ve heard: LeBron James is going to be a Laker. (As always, Lee Jenkins has written a tremendous piece going behind the scenes of LeBron’s process.)

There were a few things that made LeBron’s second decision to leave Cleveland different from the capital-D “Decision” in 2010. First of all, everyone seemed to realize the odds of LeBron returning to Cleveland were slim, which meant the prevailing emotion in Ohio was gratitude and not betrayal. Dan Gilbert, having realized how stupid the Comic Sans letter was, wrote a very thankful statement this time around. The Cleveland newspaper’s front page focused not on LeBron’s choice to go west, but on his achievement of finally winning a title for the city. 

But the other thing that made this different than 2010 is that Twitter now lets you attach photos and videos to your tweets, which means there were memes. Lots and lots of memes. 

Now LA has a God and a King!
Zlatan welcomes @KingJames pic.twitter.com/4gYooOpURD

— Zlatan Ibrahimović (@Ibra_official) July 2, 2018

Twitter is good some times

When Diamondbacks pitcher Archie Bradley lost his dog this weekend he put out the word on Twitter, hoping it would somehow reunite him with his furry friend. Sure enough, it worked. 

"I did not sleep very well. I'm not married, no kids yet, that's like my boy," Bradley told MLB.com. "That's my best friend. We sleep together every night. I picked him out right when he was born. So literally, I've been with that guy since the day he was born. To imagine him out being on the streets somewhere—or worst-case scenario, maybe run over or something like that—it was not the greatest thoughts. But at the end of the day, the people of Arizona came together, and I'm happy to be here."

The Legion of Boom really is over

Hard-hitting Seahawks safety Kam Chancellor is retiring from the NFL due to a neck injury that doctors warn could paralyze him if he continues to play. Those Seattle teams that made their name on defense were a blast to watch, but now that has vanished in a flash. Chancellor’s retirement and Richard Sherman’s release means that Earl Thomas is the last member of the Legion of Boom left, and it’s not even like the Seahawks have guys to replace them. The Seattle defense ranked near the bottom of the league against the pass last year. 

The changing tide in Seattle doesn’t just feel like the end of an era for the Seahawks—with alterations to the rules and the increasing awareness of the long-term health impacts of football, it feels like the last time we’ll see a team make defense its trademark. 

Bits & Pieces

You have to listen to the Russian call of the dramatic finish to yesterday’s game against Spain. ... A thief in Arkansas tried to use a stolen credit card to pay at a restaurant without realizing it actually belonged to the waitress. ... Armed men landed a helicopter at a French prison to break out a notorious criminal and flew away with him. 

No hard feelings this time

And the @ThePlainDealer News cover as well pic.twitter.com/NsZemR2x3b

— Margaret (Riedel) Hamm (@MargaretRiedel) July 2, 2018

Compare that to how the Cleveland paper reacted to the first time LeBron left.

LeBron isn’t the only iconic player leaving his team this summer

Not everyday you can live a childhood dream pic.twitter.com/YUTKdfMALl

— John Tavares (@91Tavares) July 1, 2018

Old tweets, man

Forget Jerry West

It’s brain-teaser on top of brain-teaser on top of brain-teaser

This is such a great idea

I hope other teams follow suit. 

No athlete has ever been so relatable

This guy has the worst luck

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Predictable but still enjoyable

Just skip to the 1:35 mark if you want to see a woman fall through the ceiling of a Canadian convenience store

The couple was eventually arrested for using a stolen credit card. 

This is a really well-done retrospective of LeBron’s first “Decision”

The best defensive outfielder in baseball, period.

If you don’t have fireworks this 4th

(Warning: loud.)

A good song

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