LeBron James’ ex-fans in Hong Kong gather to dunk on his comments

When the ball smashed into a photo of LeBron James’ face stuck above the hoop and dropped into the basket, the Hong Kong protesters cheered.

They also trampled on jerseys bearing his name and gathered in a semicircle to watch one burn.

James’ standing among Hong Kong hoops fans took a hit because of comments he made about free speech. Fans gathered on courts amid Hong Kong’s highrise buildings Tuesday to vent.

James touched a nerve among protesters for suggesting that free speech can have negative consequences. They have been protesting for months in defense of the same freedom that James said can carry“a lot of negative.”

The group, which numbered around 200, chanted support for Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey, something of a hero among demonstrators in the semi-autonomous Chinese territory for having tweeted on Oct. 4 in support of their struggle, infuriating authorities in China.

James made his comments in response to a question about whether Morey should be punished for his tweet that reverberated in China and had consequences for the NBA.

“Yes, we do have freedom of speech,”James said.“But at times, there are ramifications for the negative that can happen when you’re not thinking about others, when you only think about yourself.”

He added: “So many people could have been harmed, not only financially but physically, emotionally, spiritually. So just be careful what we tweet and what we say and what we do. Even though yes, we do have freedom of speech, it can be a lot of negative that comes with it.”