Adam Pantozzi/NBAE via Getty Images
Former teammates LeBron James and Kyrie Irving faced off for the first time this season in Wednesday’s game between the Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks, and an early interaction had fans on social media buzzing.
During a Lakers fastbreak opportunity in the first quarter, James sent Irving flying to the ground when he drove to the basket. The referees didn’t call an offensive foul, and James finished the play with a dunk:
NBA @NBA
Lakers ball movement leads to the LeBron dunk 🔥
Mavs-Lakers | Live on the NBA App
📲 https://t.co/TaxCZgZFyg pic.twitter.com/fk7zK4lYLb
The run-in between James and Irving was an early amusing moment for fans on social media:
TheOddCentral @TheOddCentral
Lebron just assaulted kyrie on live tv he fell so hard🤣🤣 #lakeshow #nba
Of course, any interaction between James and Irving is going to generate a ton of reactions due to their storied history with one another. They teamed together with the Cleveland Cavaliers for three seasons and won the NBA championship in 2016 before Irving requested to be traded.
More recently, there was rampant speculation that Irving was angling to land in Los Angeles to reunite with James this offseason. He wound up re-signing with Dallas on a three-year deal instead.
Perhaps the shove by James ignited Irving on Wednesday, as he scored 13 points in the first half to help the Mavs take a 62-46 lead into halftime.
