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Noah Lyles continues NBA beef by shading league's best player
By Sai Mohan,
7 hours ago
Noah Lyles (USA) reacts after the men's 200m final during the Paris 2024 Olympic Summer Games.
If Noah Lyles didn't already have the attention of the NBA world, he does now.
The Paris Olympics 100m gold medalist recently claimed to have never heard of Nikola Jokic, the consensus best basketball player in the world and reigning three-time NBA MVP.
"I'm gonna be honest, I don't know who that is," Lyles told Shannon Sharpe on the "Night Cap" podcast when asked about non-American players leaving their mark on the NBA.
Sharpe posed the question while discussing whether NBA champions should be considered "world champions" or only victors of the U.S.-based league. Lyles — who claimed NBA champions shouldn't be referred to as world champions in 2023 — doubled down on his stance by suggesting that the winners of the Larry O'Brien Trophy are merely winners of a national league.
"The problem that I had was you are giving the title of a world champion to people who aren't facing the world," Lyles explained. "That's where I drew the line and said that's hurtful because you already have those, but you are giving the title to people who aren't doing that. Nothing wrong with being a national champion."
Lyles further claimed to have "zero clue what basketball is" and mixed up the 73-9 Warriors with the 72-10 Bulls while talking about the 2016 NBA Finals.
Still jaded?
During the interview, Lyles came across a tad bitter while talking about how much NBA players are "celebrated" as opposed to himself and other Olympians. Lyles revealed he did not receive a hero's homecoming upon returning from a triumphant Paris Olympics.
"There was no bus waiting. I had my mom and my pops, and they were ready to take me home, and I was ready to go to bed," Lyles said of his return from Paris.
Lyles' withering remarks on the NBA have been met with a lot of blowback, with stars such as Jalen Brunson and Devin Booker suggesting that the sprinter comes across as a clout chaser with his comments. Furthermore, Carmelo Anthony recently blasted Lyles for "shooting at the NBA" due to his unhappiness with the sport of track-and-field not being as lucrative as basketball.
The sprinter's beef with the NBA further intensified when a recent report claimed he refused to attend an Adidas event last year meant to unveil Anthony Edwards' new line. Lyles would subsequently refute the report by calling Edwards an "amazing player" deserving of a signature shoe.
Lyles has also found himself in a messy back-and-forth with the NFL's Tyreek Hill, who challenged the sprinter to a race after claiming he'd beat the Olympian in a 100m meet.
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