One of the main storylines during the opening round series between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Memphis Grizzlies was Dillon Brooks’ efforts to go after LeBron James. In the aftermath of Game 2, which Memphis won, Brooks said he doesn’t respect opposing players “until they give me 40” and that he loves to “poke bears,” all of which was directed towards the Lakers’ future Hall of Fame inductee.
Game 3 saw James confront Brooks before tip and a Lakers win in which Brooks was ejected for smacking James below the belt. Game 4 saw James go right through Brooks for the dagger in another Lakers win. And while James never directly responded to anything Brooks did while he spoke to the media, he sure seems to be enjoying a victory lap on social media in the aftermath of Game 6, which the Lakers won to send the Grizzlies home.
First, James hopped onto IG and posted a collection of pictures and videos with a simple caption: “If you ever see me fighting in the forest with a Grizzly bear, HELP THE BEAR.”
Then, James went over to Twitter, where he posted the lyrics to the Jay-Z song “Trouble.”
Unlike you little
I’m a grown ass man
Big shoes to fill
Prolly hustled with your pops, go ask your parents
Its apparent you’re staring at a legend
Who, put a few little
Trying to eat without saying they grace before!— LeBron James (@KingJames) April 29, 2023
James made clear that he wasn’t trying to make any sort of statement to Brooks after Game 3. Having said that, we’re going to go ahead and assume that he really was looking forward to getting to talk a little after the Lakers punched their ticket to the Western Conference Semifinals, where they will play either the Golden State Warriors or the Sacramento Kings.