Last month, Team USA track star Noah Lyles found himself in hot water after expressing his opinion that the winners of the NBA Finals shouldn’t be called “World Champions” because they compete primarily against teams from the United States. 

His remarks ignited a social media storm, with Damian Lillard, Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, and even Drake among those roasting Lyles online. Follow your favourite basketball team with attractive betting odds from Nextbet, one of the best basketball gambling sites.

Over two weeks since making those comments, Lyles appeared on the I AM AN ATHLETE Podcast with Brandon Marshall. During the podcast, he addressed the intense backlash he faced, but he didn’t waver from his original stance.

Lyles explained, “I didn’t hear that this was going viral until the last day of the World Championships. You know, I’m celebrating, we went out to the club and my phone started to blow up with my friends texting me, saying, ‘What’s going on? You got the whole NBA on your head right now.’ Then I’m like, ‘What are you talking about?’ So I put on my phone and see just a few basketball players like whatever, and then I see KD’s talking, and then you got a few others, Drake, Drake chimed in.”

“But at the same time, it’s like wow, they actually heard something. The US is too easily giving out World Championships just because the rest of the world doesn’t play the sport that we’re playing. Not to say that we’re not the greatest at it and we have some amazing and the best ever in that sport, it’s just you can’t call yourself World Champions if you don’t face the rest of the world,” he added.

Lyles’ argument has a point – labeling NBA champions as “World Champions” seems misleading when they primarily compete within the United States. However, it’s essential to acknowledge that the NBA attracts the best basketball talent globally, making it reasonable to consider the league’s winners as world champions.

The debate surrounding this issue has two sides, with valid arguments on both ends. Lyles’ comments, though, generated controversy seemingly out of nowhere, especially considering his success at the World Track & Field Championships. He might not have anticipated that NBA athletes would strongly object to his viewpoint, especially given the significantly larger fan base of basketball compared to track and field. Get the latest updates from the world of basketball only on Nextbet Sports. 

As the controversy continues to simmer, it’s likely that more responses will surface, highlighting the ongoing debate about whether NBA champions deserve the title of “World Champions.”