Why Was LeBron James In Attendance At Celtics-Cavaliers?

The Celtics on Monday took a 3-1 series lead over the Cavaliers in Game 4 at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, and there was a special guest in attendance.

Jayson Tatum was the star of the show as Boston played its first postseason game that ended in a single-digit margin of victory, despite Cleveland missing Donovan Mitchell. Khloe Kardashian was in attendance to support Cavs center Tristan Thompson, but arguably the bigger star who had a front row seat to Game 4 was LeBron James.

It was a sight that came out of nowhere for NBA fans as the Los Angeles Lakers superstar watched the game with his wife Savannah and business partner Rich Paul.

ESPN’s Brian Windhorst revealed on “Get Up” on Tuesday that his phone blew up with people around the NBA sending him his iconic meme wondering why James would make an appearance in Cleveland. The NBA insider revealed James and his wife were in town for Mother’s Day, and Paul told the Lakers he would appear at the Celtics-Cavaliers game.

Windhorst then went into speculation mode. He pointed out that Bronny James worked out at the NBA combine last weekend and impressed scouts. The former USC guard’s draft status could be tied to his father, but Paul publicly said that would not be the case. However, that hasn’t stopped NBA fans from wondering if a team would draft Bronny to get a chance to sign LeBron James.

The Lakers only have the No. 55 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft — the Celtics have one pick ahead of them in the second round — so it seems unlikely Los Angeles can draft James’ son. However, Windhorst believes the 39-year-old could be sending the Lakers a message to do more to help his pursuit of a fifth NBA title.

Whether or not James is angling another return to Cleveland is up in the air, but Monday seemed to mark the beginning of the NBA world getting into a frenzy over whether or not James opts into his contract this offseason.