"Grow Up " — Fans react as Isiah Thomas slams LeBron James for warming up without a shirt

NBA fans have been reacting to the Detroit Pistons legend Isiah Thomas’ outburst at LeBron James for the way the latter chose to warm up before a game.

James was seen on the court shirtless, taking a few shots before the Los Angeles Lakers vs. Houston Rockets game on April 12 on the NBA TV broadcast. Thomas, an analyst for the network, reacted to James being without a shirt during the warm-up routine.

Saying that he was against players on the floor without a shirt on, and that NBA’s professionalism had “diminished,” Thomas, who was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2000, shared that James should be fined for appearing on the court without a shirt.

In reaction to the viral moment of one NBA legend talking about another, netizens had a lot to say. While most fans expressed support for LeBron James and defended him against Isiah Thomas’ rebuke, some netizens sided with Thomas, and felt that it was important to uphold the NBA league’s ideals.

A netizen defended James on X and, addressing Thomas, wrote:

“There’s nothing professional about basketball. It’s a sport, they’re athletes; grow up.”

A fan expressed his position quite succinctly, asking:

“What is wrong with it though”

One James fan had a hilarious response, and commented:

“I speak for all of us when I say we want to see LeBron shirtless”

Another netizen pointed out the double standards at play by saying:

"if nba media is allowed to interview players post game with their shirts off and zero sense of privacy, they can warm up without a shirt on lol”

A netizen, who agreed with Isiah Thomas, wrote:

“MJ would never disrespect the league like this”

Another commenter expressed agreement with Thomas’ position and added:

“He’s not wrong. Unless you are a life guard, boxer, or something similar, you shouldn’t be at work, in front of customers, shirtless.”

Isiah Thomas on LeBron James

Isiah Thomas’ April 12 tirade against LeBron James included the Hall of Famer calling himself a fan of the latter. However, Thomas’ reprimand of the 40-year-old Los Angeles Lakers player seemed quite scathing. On the NBA TV broadcast, Thomas had said:

“Look, I like LeBron, I'm a fan of his, so forth and so on, but to walk out on the floor before a game, with no shirt on, and shoot, I mean, come on, man? Where we at? What we doing? Where we at?”

Previously however, Thomas has spoken fondly about James. As per The Mirror, Thomas has in fact lauded James’ achievement on the floor. Thomas, in a conversation with MLive about James, had said:

“He’s passed Kareem in scoring. I think he’s got the most playoff points. Not only that, when you look at the assist column, I know where I stand on the assist record. I think he’s passed me; I think he’s passed Magic on the assist record.”

Continuing, Thomas had even named James as one of the best basketball player according to him. Thomas said:

“Now, everyone has their favorites, but if the numbers don’t lie, the numbers don’t lie. And he definitely passes the eye test. So to me, he’s the best that I’ve ever seen from a team standpoint and also as a basketball player.”

Meanwhile, LeBron James has commented subtly on Thomas rebuking him on live television. In a post on X, James wrote:

“Man I was going to say something but it’s useless at this point in my career!”

While James may not want to directly address Isiah Thomas’ reprimand, his fans have surely taken care of defending him.