Kareem Abdul-Jabbar apologizes for negative remarks about LeBron James

A day after openly criticizing LeBron James for some acts that he considers to be “embarrassing” and “beneath him” considering James’ stature in both the sport of basketball and society at large, Los Angeles Lakers legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar issued an apology to the current Lakers star.
Source: Dave McMenamin @ ESPN

What’s the buzz on Twitter?

Micah Adams @MicahAdams13
Lonzo Ball
Darius Garland
Brandon Ingram
LeBron James
Kyle Kuzma
Alex Caruso
Josh Hart
Montrezl Harrell
The Lakers won the 2020 title. But are we sure they don’t win at least one with this crew had they just done… nothing? – 11:34 PM Zach Kram @zachkram
Not official yet but…
LeBron in Miami: 4 years, 4 finals (2 titles)
LeBron in his CLE return: 4 years, 4 finals (1 title)
LeBron in L.A.: 4 years, 2 missed playoffs, 1 first-round loss, 1 title – 10:06 PM Micah Adams @MicahAdams13
Joel Embiid overtakes LeBron James for the scoring title lead.
No center has won the scoring title since Shaq in 2000.
Scoring titles by centers
1947-1976: 22
1976-2000: 3
Since 2000: 0 – 9:53 PM Jim Owczarski @JimOwczarski
For those of you scoring at home re: the NBA scoring champion chase…LeBron James is out injured tonight and Joel Embiid dropped 45 tonight. – 9:22 PM Duane Rankin @DuaneRankin
LeBron James (ankle) out for #Lakers‘ ‘must-win’ game at #Suns with play-in hopes on line azcentral.com/story/sports/n… via @azcentral – 9:00 PM Ryan Ward @RyanWardLA
For those that haven’t already heard, LeBron James (ankle) is OUT for tonight’s game against the Suns.
We’ll hear from Frank Vogel shortly on who else maybe ruled out. – 8:51 PM Keith Pompey @PompeyOnSixers
With his last basket, Joel Embiid has supplanted LeBron James as the scoring leader. Embiid needed 35 points to pass him. He has 36 thus far. – 8:37 PM Ben Rohrbach @brohrbach
For @The Vertical: Measuring the weight of statistics, losses and legacy in LeBron James’ All-NBA case.
sports.yahoo.com/measuring-the-… – 6:10 PM Chris Mannix @SIChrisMannix
NEW @TheCrossover Pod w/@Howard Beck: Lakers facing elimination (and what comes next), Ben Simmons wants his money, if the Nets should avoided, more; @Kevin Love on his reserve role, the Cavs success, a LeBron return, more. Links: https://t.co/l8eHfbkR3g pic.twitter.com/npNfoghfPX – 6:03 PM Dave McMenamin @mcten
New story: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar joined SiriusXM NBA Radio to address the comments he made about @kingjames. “I want to whole-heartedly apologize to LeBron and make it clear to him that I have tremendous respect for him,” @Kareem Abdul-Jabbar said. es.pn/3j92484 – 5:43 PM NBA Math @NBA_Math
LeBron James can win the scoring title without actually qualifying for the scoring title.
Wait, what?
From @fromal09 on @Sportscasting19: sportscasting.com/lebron-james-n… – 5:30 PM Dave McMenamin @mcten
New story: Setting the table for Tuesday night in Phoenix where the Lakers will be without LeBron and the Suns can make some history es.pn/3LN37H1 – 4:11 PM StatMuse @statmuse
Players in the last 5 years with over 2,700 points + assists in a season:
Trae Young (2022)
James Harden (3x)
LeBron James (2018)
Russell Westbrook (2018)
Trae is 1st in total assists (692) and 2nd in total points (2,036) this season. pic.twitter.com/RtkQddAsr5 – 3:35 PM Chris Mannix @SIChrisMannix
Column: “I think it can add a lot of time to my career.” @KevinLove on his transition to super sub, Cleveland’s surprising success and if the 2016 team text chain offers any clues on LeBron’s future si.com/nba/2022/04/05… – 3:28 PM Jorge Sierra @hoopshype
OUT TONIGHT
LeBron James
Cole Anthony
Gary Harris
Seth Curry
More: hoopshype.com/lists/nba-inju… – 3:03 PM Jorge Sierra @hoopshype
LeBron, Giannis and Embiid are fighting for the scoring title, but actually none of them will lead the NBA in points this season.
No. 1 will be either DeRozan or Trae.
Idea to disincentivize load management: Give the scoring title to the guy who actually scores the most points. – 2:56 PM Kyle Goon @kylegoon
The Lakers could be eliminated tonight, and LeBron James won’t be in the lineup: ocregister.com/2022/04/05/leb… – 2:47 PM Bill Oram @billoram
Landing in Phoenix to the news that LeBron James will miss his second straight game, and fourth of last five, with ankle sprain. The only remaining intrigue is whether he will make it on the court for the two more games that would qualify him for the scoring title. – 2:14 PM StatMuse @statmuse
Fun fact: LeBron could theoretically still win the scoring title even though he doesn’t play enough games.
If his total points divided by 58 games (regardless of how many he plays) leads the league, he wins.
Currently that number is 1,695 PTS / 58 = 29.2 PPG. pic.twitter.com/3qrjispnFk – 2:09 PM Dan Favale @danfavale
if i were the lakers i simply would’ve traded for steph and giannis while also keeping kcp and caruso and ad and lebron and then easily made the playoffs pic.twitter.com/fB22y19Hgj – 2:07 PM Adam Wexler @AdamJWexler
The Lakers will be eliminated from playoff (play-in tournament) contention with a loss at Suns & a Spurs win at Denver.
Lakers just announced LeBron James will miss tonight’s game w/ ankle soreness. – 2:03 PM Mark Medina @MarkG_Medina
Lakers say that LeBron James is out tonight vs Phoenix with a left ankle sprain. Lakers are out of play-in if they lost tonight and Spurs win – 2:03 PM Melissa Rohlin @melissarohlin
LeBron James is out for tonight against Phoenix because of a left ankle sprain, per the Lakers. – 2:02 PM Dave McMenamin @mcten
LeBron James is out tonight against the Suns with left ankle soreness, per the Lakers. – 2:01 PM Mike Bresnahan @Mike_Bresnahan
Lakers announce that LeBron James is out for tonight’s game in Phoenix because of his sprained ankle. – 1:59 PM Marc J. Spears @MarcJSpears
Lakers say LeBron James (left ankle sprain) is out for tonight’s game at Phoenix. – 1:58 PM Brad Turner @BA_Turner
LeBron James is out with left ankle sprain for Lakers at Suns, per team. – 1:58 PM Shams Charania @ShamsCharania
Lakers star LeBron James (ankle) will miss second consecutive game tonight vs. Suns. – 1:57 PM Kyle Goon @kylegoon
Lakers have announced LeBron is OUT tonight in Phoenix – 1:57 PM Mike Trudell @LakersReporter
LeBron is out tonight at Phoenix due to his left ankle sprain. – 1:57 PM StatMuse @statmuse
Players 35 or older to average 10 PPG and 10 APG in a season:
Steve Nash (3x)
LeBron James (2020)
Chris Paul (2022)
The first time the point god has averaged a double-double since the 2016 season. pic.twitter.com/BAmqekGjWA – 1:47 PM Bob Garcia @bgarciaivsports
LeBron James’ sustained excellence has pushed Julius Erving to voice that he will redefine the GOAT standard.
#Lakers #LakeShow #NBA
sportscasting.com/lebron-james-i… – 1:33 PM Kamenetzky Brothers @KamBrothers
Tuesday’s @LockedOnLakers podcast! We talk the hypocrisy, bad facts, and hilarity of Magic saying *he* set up the Lakers w/ DeRozan – part of a core w/Buddy Hield, KCP and Caruso! – but LeBron/Pelinka chose Russ instead. @LockedOnNBAPods @LockedOnNetwork
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mag… – 10:58 AM Tommy Beer @TommyBeer
Total number of playoff wins over the last 20 years:
The New York Knicks team: 8
LeBron James: 174 – 10:55 AM Chris Broussard @Chris_Broussard
Was Kareem out of line with his comments about LeBron? Is Embiid the MVP candidate he thinks he is? #NationalChampionship & more! Guests: @Aaron_Torres @Kerry_Kittles30 @Mark Medina
Catch us live weeknights 7-10p ET on @FoxSportsRadio & @iHeartRadio podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the… – 10:30 AM Tas Melas @TasMelas
All-NBA ballot position oddities:
Luka Doncic eligible at forward and guard
DeMar DeRozan eligible at forward and guard
Jayson Tatum eligible at forward and guard (????)
LeBron eligible at forward and guard
Jokic/Embiid eligible at forward and center – 9:49 AM Tommy Beer @TommyBeer
Since the All-Star break, IQ is averaging 15.2 points, 5.1 rebs, 4.2 assists & 2.0 treys while shooting over 39% from deep.
The only players to match or exceed those numbers in those categories are:
KD, Middleton, Tatum, LaMelo, M. Brides, Luka and LeBron
tommybeer.substack.com/p/quickley-pos… – 9:33 AM Kurt Helin @basketballtalk
Magic Johnson says he wanted DeRozan on Lakers, LeBron pushed for Westbrook nba.nbcsports.com/2022/04/05/mag… – 9:01 AM Alex Kennedy @AlexKennedyNBA
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to @basketbllnews on LeBron James: “I just thought he wasn’t adding positive energy to what he’s trying to do with some of the things he was doing. I don’t know if you saw his big-balls , but it was ridiculous. I don’t get it.” basketballnews.com/stories/kareem… – 9:13 PM

More on this storyline

“All I have to say is this: I was there to give Carmelo Anthony the NBA Social Justice Champion Award. I’ve been talking to the press since high school, that’s 60 years of making statements. And I haven’t always gotten it right. And Sunday was one of those nights,” Abdul-Jabbar said Monday on SiriusXM NBA Radio, referring to the comments he had made at Crypto.com Arena before the Lakers’ game against the Denver Nuggets. -via ESPN / April 5, 2022 “It wasn’t my intention to criticize LeBron in any way. He has done so much for the Black community as well as for the game of basketball. We may not always agree, but I want to wholeheartedly apologize to LeBron and make it clear to him that I have tremendous respect for him. And if he can accept that, I’ll be very happy.” -via ESPN / April 5, 2022 Ryan Ward: Frank Vogel on Russell Westbrook: “He’s doing everything he can. … I’m proud of Russ.” -via Twitter @RyanWardLA / April 3, 2022