Iman Shumpert says LeBron James ruined basketball

Throughout history, LeBron James has been one of the most polarizing figures around the NBA. Some love him, some hate him, some think he’s the greatest player of all time; others state that he does it all for the show.

Whatever’s the case, no one can deny that James paved the way for many other players by starting the so-called player empowerment era. Now, all stars are in control of their destiny and decide where they want to play more often than not.

But more than that, some claim that James started the era of ‘Superteams,’ with multiple stars teaming up to get an easier path to an NBA championship. Notably, that seems to be what his former teammate Iman Shumpert thinks of him.

Iman Shumpert Says LeBron James Ruined Basketball By Joining The Miami Heat

“Bron ruined basketball,” Shumpert said in an interview.“He thought he was making it better I get him. Me, personally, I love the NBA for the loyalty that I thought was there. He basically knocked the fourth wall down like the organization they bullsh*tting, we doing what we want.”

“Great business move for sure but when you think about it outside looking in like, I got people tweeting me right now. They like literally talking about owners and trades, it’s like bro y’all aren’t supposed to be talking about none of this actually,” Shumpert added.

It’s not usual to see players stay on the same team for over a decade, especially if we’re talking about small markets. But you can’t put the whole blame on LeBron, even if he was one of the first guys to openly pull it off.

Also, James eventually came back home and fulfilled his promise of winning a ring with the Cavaliers, even if he also needed a bit of a Superteam to pull it off. At the end of the day, Superteams will always be a subject of controversy but it’s not like the league can do anything about it.