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The FIFA World Cup 2022 ended with Argentina defeating the defending-champion French national team. The two tied 3-3, but Argentina won 4-2 in penalty kicks.

As one of the biggest sporting events of the year, many athletes tuned in to the World Cup. One of the star NBA players watching was LeBron James.

James shouted out Argentina forward Lionel Messi.

James and Messi are both considered among the greatest players in their respective sports. James, who won championships with the Miami Heat in 2012 and 2013, is regarded by some to be the greatest NBA player of all time. Messi is in that same conversation among soccer players.

James also showed some love to France forward Kylian Mbappé, who had an amazing performance despite the loss.

Some even drew comparisons between James’ 2018 playoff run to Mbappe’s World Cup game. Like James with the Cavaliers, Mbappe had little help from his teammates.

Of course, James speaking on any situation is going to result in memes from social media users. The recurring joke of him lying about knowledge of outcomes continued.

James, in his 20th year in the league, is trying to break Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s NBA record in all-time points.


Jayden Armant is a contributor to Inside the Heat. He is a student at Howard University. He can be reached at jayden.armant@bison.howard.edu or follow him on Twitter @jaydenarmant.