NFL legend and current sports commentator Shannon Sharpe is one of the most vocal supporters of LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers, and the Pro Football Hall of Famer became involved in a heated dispute with the Memphis Grizzlies from his courtside seat on Friday night.
As the first half ended with the Lakers trailing 53-49, Grizzlies star Dillon Brooks and Sharpe exchanged words from across the court, and Steven Adams and Ja Morant soon came over to join the argument. The situation needed to be de-escalated by a mob of trainers and security.
Sharpe told ESPN’s Dave McMenamin that the Grizzlies “didn’t want this smoke.” The Lakers went on to snap the Grizzlies’ 11-game winning streak.
Via ESPN:
“They didn’t want this smoke, Dave. They do all that talking and jockeying and I ain’t about that jockeying. It started with Dillon Brooks. I said he was too small to guard LeBron. He said, ‘(expletive) me’. I said, ‘(expletive) you’ back. He started to come at me, and I said, ‘You don’t want these problems.’ And then Ja came out of nowhere talking. He definitely didn’t want these problems. Then the dad came and he obviously didn’t want no problems.”
Here’s what players and NBA fans were saying about the moment: