Lakers' LeBron James Calls Out Doug Gottlieb Following Tough First Season in NCAA

Matt Levine | Feb 17, 2025

Chris Nicoll-Imagn Images

Los Angeles Lakers star forward LeBron James normally takes the high road when it comes to criticism. However, every so often, James will engage with the trolls or say something to go back at people.

James took to social media recently to call out NCAA basketball coach Doug Gottlieb over his rough first season with the team. Gottlieb recently took over as the head coach of the University of Wisconsin–Green Bay and it's been a rough year.

Earned 2 Not Given! Gotta give him credit though! 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣. 💩 💩 💩 💩 💩 https://t.co/khxpnlvUY1

— LeBron James (@KingJames) February 17, 2025

Many have speculated that the main reason James decided to engage with the record of Gottlieb's team is due to previous comments he made about his son, Bronny. Bronny has received all sorts of criticism since the Lakers drafted him but James seemed to take offense to the comments from Gottlieb.

The head coach called out James for being a bad basketball parent a while ago and it seems James has kept that with him. Gottlieb criticized James for making people watch his son play even though he wasn't ready for the NBA, at least in his eyes.

“This toxicity is based upon one guy. And LeBron is a good father, is a good parent, but he’s a bad basketball parent because he’s making people elevate his kid to a level that his skill is not close to being at.”

Many have believed that Bronny wasn't ready for the NBA but Gottlieb has never been shy about making his feelings known. The coach still does a podcast about basketball even though he has taken over as a head coach.

Currently, Gottlieb's team sits with a record of 4-24 for the season. It has been a very rough year for him and James is loving every minute of watching him fail.

It's extremely rare to see James engage in this sort of manner so fans have been enjoying it. Los Angeles has been better than most people expected so James seems to be in a good mood.

The Lakers star has his fun but will also be looking to get back onto the court as soon as possible. James missed the NBA All-Star Game due to injury but is hopeful to return to the court when the Lakers have their next game.

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