LeBron James silent as new China controversy swirls around him

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LeBron James stayed silent this week as controversy swirled around him over a piece in a Chinese state-run newspaper with his byline that appeared on Monday.

James’ byline appeared in the People’s Daily, the official newspaper of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party. The piece expressed appreciation of China and the Chinese people. It would have marked the first time an NBA player had ever penned an essay in Chinese government-controlled media and would come nearly six years after the Los Angeles Lakers star ripped former Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey for his social media post in support of Hong Kong protesters against the Chinese government.

As the NBA superstar received a ton of criticism and condemnation for the words that appeared to be his, a new report on Tuesday offered a new twist but fewer answers about the piece.

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Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) warms up before the game against the Golden State Warriors at Chase Center on Jan. 25, 2025. (Darren Yamashita/Imagn Images)

The Athletic, citing unnamed sources, reported that James "didn’t write the article that carried his name" in the People’s Daily. The report said that James did group interviews with reporters in two cities in China he visited as part of the "Forever King Tour" with Nike. The sources told the outlet that James’ words in the paper were accurate "but they were not submitted to anyone as an essay or an opinion editorial."

Three Chinese translators told The Athletic that the People’s Daily referred to James as the "author" of the piece but "also states that James was