Brian Windhorst breaks his silence about LeBron James' comments with firm reply on First Take

LeBron James appeared on The Pat McAfee Show on Wednesday, where he dove into multiple topics with the former NFL punter. One of the points the Lakers forward emphasized was his criticism of the NBA media world. James has made comments throughout the season about the negative perspective through which outlets like ESPN cover the game, spurring a response from Brian Windhorst.

Brian Windhorst and LeBron James have a long history with one another, beginning when James was in high school at St. Vincent-St. Mary's. Windhorst began covering him there and followed him throughout his journey into the NBA, serving as the head reporter on the team that covered his time with the Miami Heat.

On Thursday's episode of First Take, Windhorst reacted to LeBron James' comments that the NBA media world is misguided, saying a balance needs to be struck when weighing the positives and negatives of the game and its star players, but the bickering going on now doesn't offer a stable solution.

"I think there's room for all of it," Windhorst said when talking about the differing frames of coverage that NBA players and the media want for the league. "There's room to hold each other accountable. But the finger-pointing, I don't think that benefits anybody."

Windhorst isn't the first to react to LeBron James' comments about the NBA's coverage by sports media.

Stephen A. Smith and James have been at odds since the beginning of the month over how the league is covered, leaving LeBron concerned about the next generation of stars that will cover the league when he and fellow stars Kevin Durant and Steph Curry decide to retire.

LeBron James and Stephen A. Smith disagree about the "Face of the NBA" mantle

At this year's All-Star break, one of the main topics of conversation was projecting which young stars will represent the league in the future. LeBron James, Durant, and Curry have been the faces of the league for the past decade, but with them all approaching the end of their careers, people are looking toward the future. After Anthony Edwards said he didn't want the mantle, LeBron James defended him.

"Why do you want to be the face of the league when all the people that cover our game and talk about our game on a day-to-day basis s*** on everybody?" LeBron asked when talking about Edwards turning down the mantle of "face of the NBA". "To have that responsibility, that's just weird. It's weird energy."

LeBron James has been the face of the league, carrying on the proverbial torch from the late Laker legend Kobe Bryant for most of his career. Now that people are looking to see who will take the torch from James, the Lakers forward has issued a word of caution, saying that the ridicule and critique that the "face of the league" catches can put them under a lot of pressure.

Members of the sports media world have pushed back against James' comments, including Stephen A. Smith, who says that being the "face of the league" is an honor, regardless of how the media treats the player. The NBA is at an intriguing point as the era begins to change, but the tenuous relationship between players and the media remains at the forefront of people's minds.