After scoring his 25,000 point during the Sixers earlier in the week, LeBron debuted the NIKEiD LeBron 13 “25K” option on-court against the New York Knicks last night. The Cavs rocked their fifth jersey in just as many games, but don’t expect the Cavaliers to wear them anytime soon after The King’s lukewarm reception. The signature sleeves adidas brought to basketball uniforms appeared problematic for LeBron’s shooting percentage and late in the second quarter he ripped them open to free up his shooting rotation. That didn’t appear to help all that much though as his shooting woes continued. LBJ finished with 23 points on 9/23 shooting making his lone jump shot on a contested three point attempt. The good news? Nike’s taking over NBA uniforms in a couple of seasons and the Cavs held on to withstand a 15 point deficit to win the game. Check out the latest LeBron 13 below.
Update:
Despite LeBron voicing his displeasure about sleeved jerseys in the past while with the Miami Heat, here’s what he had to say about last night’s uniform per ESPN’s Dave McMenamin:
“I don’t know, it might be mental, man,” James said. “It’s OK. The jerseys are nice. We love the jerseys. The black looks great. It’s been awhile since this franchise has worn black. So it’s great to be out there and wear those uniforms. I was in my own way. I was frustrated with my shot, I couldn’t make a bucket, so like I said, I had to take it out on something.”
“I mean, if the fans love them, I love them,” James said. “That’s what it’s all about. I think our fans here in Cleveland and around the world and around the league love the uniforms. I’ll wear them for 48 minutes in a ballgame. Obviously, I’m so used to the sleeveless cutoffs, whatever you want to call them — tank tops — I’ve been playing in tank tops my whole life. But for a game here, a game there, I don’t mind it.”
Source: Cleveland.com/ NikeLeBron