NBA superstar LeBron James drew sharp criticism online after speaking favorably about Israeli basketball player Deni Avdija and offering warm remarks about Israel during media availability ahead of Sunday’s NBA All-Star Game in Inglewood, California.

When approached by an Israeli reporter before the game and asked about Avdija, James responded enthusiastically about the forward’s performance. “I said I believe he was an All-Star. He’s playing exceptional basketball. So that’s that.”

James then broadened his comments to address fans in Israel. “If I have fans over there – I’ve never been there – I hope you’ve been following my career. I hope I inspire people over there to not only want to be great at sports but be better in general in life. Hopefully someday I could make it over there. Like I said, I’ve never been over there, but I heard nothing but great things.”

The remarks quickly spread across social media platforms, where they were met with harsh reactions from critics. British-American commentator Mehdi Hasan condemned the statements, writing, “What a disgrace LeBron is,” as he shared a post from Al Jazeera journalist Laila Al-Arian that read, “The entire human rights community: Israel is an apartheid state committing genocide and ethnic cleansing. LeBron James: ‘I’ve heard great things about Israel.’”

American online personality Hasan Piker also attacked James, posting, “He said hope I inspire Israel to be great (at killing children). My goat is WASHED.” Other users accused the NBA star of ignoring “Palestinian Arab suffering” and argued that praising Israel in the midst of the ongoing conflict was inappropriate.

James has not publicly addressed the criticism as of this writing.

Avdija, meanwhile, marked a milestone on Sunday by becoming the first Israeli player to appear in an NBA All-Star Game.

Now in his sixth NBA season and second with the Portland Trail Blazers, Avdija entered the league as the ninth overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft by the Washington Wizards. He spent four seasons in Washington before being dealt to Portland ahead of the 2024–25 campaign.