The NBA Finals beginning on ABC also means a Jimmy Kimmel Live pregame show. And with Game 1 tipping off Tuesday night, the show brought back a popular feature, NBA Players Mean Tweets.
Current and former NBA players (oh, and LaVar Ball) participated in this latest edition, reading critical and mean-spirited posts from Twitter and then reacting to the insults. Those reading Mean Tweets included Shaquille O’Neal, Grant Hill, Trae Young, Kemba Walker, Dwight Howard, Ja Morant, and representing one of the teams in this year’s NBA Finals, the Milwaukee Bucks’ Khris Middleton.
These tweets were pretty tame compared to past years. Is it possible that fans are becoming nicer to their favorite NBA players and broadcasters? Probably not! The tweets we saw were likely the only ones suitable — or funny enough — for prime-time television. And several of them were about teeth.
Take a look:
O’Neal throwing down the mother card might have been the strongest response to a Mean Tweet from @Ichabodbc about his weight. Don’t fake the funk on a nasty dunk when you’re going at Dr. Shaq.
“Tell your mother to make my sandwich,” said the Diesel. “And be naked when I get there. Hi, Mom.”
Another good reply was Morant’s pained look at the camera. Sometimes, words aren’t necessary.
What was the best Mean Tweet? Grant Hill certainly enjoyed the tweeter who said his constantly raised eyebrows make him look like he’s always surprising himself with what he says.
This is only one person’s opinion, but @porter_hurd03 saying that Trae Young’s hair looks like a lollipop that’s been dropped on the carpet was probably the most creative. And Young had a pretty good response, trying to turn an insult into a compliment.
Overall, not a bad bunch of tweets, but no particularly memorable ones either. At least Shaq had an equally mean response for his detractor. Hopefully, everyone raises their game for next year’s NBA Finals.
