Former NBA star thinks LeBron James was punished for national anthem behavior

LeBron James has faced a wave of criticism since he was caught practicing his golf swing during the national anthem before the Philadelphia 76ers’ season opener. And another former NBA player is now piling on.

Former NBA guard Jason Williams said that James should have stood still for the anthem, and he’s convinced that the league fined James for the moment.

National Anthem Backlash

Before the Sixers’ season opener against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden, video shared by ClutchPoints showed James swinging his arms as if practicing a golf swing during the anthem, then going through his shooting motion.

President Donald Trump demanded an apology on Truth Social, calling James a “TOTAL DISGRACE.” James brushed off the criticism, calling it a “slow news day,” while longtime critic Skip Bayless came to his defense, and Stephen A. Smith called out Trump’s vendetta against him.

Others weren’t as forgiving. Former SportsCenter anchor Linda Cohn tore into James over the moment, and Charles Barkley called it “disrespectful”, even though he made it clear that he doesn’t care what Trump thinks.

“[LeBron] was very disrespectful, but I don’t ever pay any attention to what President Trump says,” Barkley said, via SiriusXM NBA Radio.

‘Stand the [Expletive] Still’

Williams brought up the anthem on the latest episode of his Barstool Sports podcast, Hoopin’ N Hollerin’, starting with the WNBA. Both teams in the WNBA Finals have left the court before the anthem, which many WNBA teams have done for years.

“Why ain’t nobody talking about this [expletive] then? Cuz [expletive] in the NBA got to stand at attention during the national anthem,” Williams said on the show. “And we’ll talk about [Bron] in a minute, but we talking about these girls first. How are they running off?”

“Do the [expletive] over there in war just run off the field, a battlefield, when a bomb comes?” he added.

When his co-host asked whether he had a problem with James swinging his arms like a golf club during the anthem, Williams said he did.

“I think [expletive] just stand the [expletive] still during the national anthem,” Williams said.

Williams then made it clear that he expects the NBA has already dealt with it.

“I wish he’d stand the [expletive] still. I bet he got fined for that, too,” Williams said.

When his co-host doubted that, Williams pointed out that James also wasn’t dressed the same as his teammates during the anthem.

“You’re supposed to stand still. Look, they’re all dressed the same. He dressed different. Guaranteed he got fined cuz y’all supposed to be dressed the same,” Williams said. “Supposed to be standing still. No matter when I play, that’s the rules.”

The league has not announced any sort of formal punishment for James.