During Team USA’s basketball quarterfinal against Brazil at the Paris 2024 Olympics, LeBron James found himself in an amusing situation when he mistakenly thought the crowd’s cheers were for him. The basketball legend, accustomed to adulation, waved and performed his signature crown gesture, only to realize the applause was actually for French swimmer Léon Marchand. Marchand, who was attending the game, had just won four gold medals and one silver, and set a new record in the men’s breaststroke event, surpassing Michael Phelps’ 16-year-old record with a time of 1:54.06.
The mix-up occurred because James was shown on the jumbotron around the same time the crowd began cheering for Marchand, leading to the confusion. Social media quickly picked up on the incident, with some users poking fun at James. One person commented, “Bro really thinks he is the main character all the time,” while another defended him, saying, “He looked up on the big screen to see what it was and these idiots had him on there for a good minute, what else was he supposed to think.”
Crowd started cheering and LeBron thought it was for him, but it was for gold medal french swimmer Léon Marchand in the crowd pic.twitter.com/Z0e5lHMrQ0
— ??T ??IG?T (@itsAntWright) August 6, 2024
Despite the humorous blunder, James continues to perform impressively in the Olympics, helping Team USA secure a spot in the semifinals. In the game against Brazil, he finished with 12 points, nine assists, three rebounds, and three steals, contributing to Team USA’s 122-87 victory.
