Inside The Thunder

LeBron James Wants Fans in the Arena

LeBron James wants to play basketball but he wants you in the seats when it happens.

Erik Gee

When Lebron James steps away from Basketball, he should consider being a talk show host. James has never been short on opinions, even if he was "misinformed" about human rights violations in China, James is going to tell you what's on his mind at the moment.

LeBron's willingness to tell you his real feeling makes his HBO show The Shop a must watch and makes him one of the most compelling figures in the world today. When James speaks, we listen. 

We were listening on Thursday when he spoke about what the NBA would look like without fans. "I still think, like, having a game without fans is just — what is the word 'sport' without 'fan'?"  

The comments come from the Road Trippin' podcast featuring former teammates Channing Fye and Richard Jefferson.  Some might see James's comments as selfish, but he also understands that with no fans, there is no game. 

 "There's no excitement. There's no crying. There's no joy. There's no back-and-forth." James says having fans in the arena "brings out the competitive side of the players." 

Showing his Jordanesque demeanor, LeBron wants you to know he feeds off the "hostile environment" because, as he puts it, "you're playing against that opponent in front of you, but you really want to kick the fans' ass, too."

Adam Silver, Mark Cuban, and others want to see the NBA crank back up even if fans can't come to games. James, on the other hand, isn't down with that idea. 

"So to get back on the floor, I would love it. … But, like, we can do that in scrimmages," James said. "Let's just go to each other's practice facility, put out a camera, just scrimmage, and live-stream it."

As much as I like LeBron, count me the camp with Sliver and Cuban. Basketball will bring us some much-needed stress relief, plus as a bonus with no fans in the stands, we could hear the trash talk between players, and I am here for that. 

 Changes Coming?

Hawks CEO Steve Koonin is proposing that the NBA change its schedule to start in mid-December. The current shutdown may force the association into a schedule change that proves to beneficial for both ratings and finances. 

Your Thoughts:

Are you cool with the NBA playing games with no fans in the arena? Click the comment box below. 

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Erik Gee
ERIK GEE

With more than 20 years of experience hosting local and national radio shows, Erik Gee is a fixture of Oklahoma sports media. He has covered the Oklahoma City Thunder for the past six seasons. He is also the co-host of the Pat Jones show on 97.1 The Sports Animal in Tulsa. 

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