"They go low, we go lower. Love the pettiness": Fans can't keep calm after LeBron James trolls Stephen A. Smith with comical post

The back-and-forth between LeBron James and Stephen A. Smith has now spilled onto social media, with the LA Lakers star addressing it publicly for the first time on “The Pat McAfee Show” on Wednesday, prompting a swift response from the ESPN analyst.

During his own show, Smith claimed he would have “immediately swung” on James if their confrontation had turned physical. LeBron seemed to catch wind of Smith’s remark and took to Instagram, posting a clip of Smith practicing his boxing, seemingly mocking him.

NBA fans found the humor in LeBron James’ post. One user wrote:

“THEY GO LOW, WE GO LOWER. LOVE the pettiness 🤣🤣.”

“LeBron villain arc we here,” another said.

“LMFAOOOO F**K KENDRICK AND DRAKE THIS BEEF IS BETTER,” another added.

The tension between James and Smith began after Smith’s comments about Bronny James, LeBron’s son. The four-time NBA champion confronted the ESPN personality when the Lakers faced the Knicks earlier this month.

“LeMenace,” another fan said.

“We got villain Lebron before GTA 6,” another commented.

“YOOOOO LMAOOO THIS IS THE DUDE WHOS SUPPOSED TO SWING ON BRON?” another added.

Stephen A. Smith responds to LeBron James’ comments, references Will Smith’s Oscars slap

After LeBron James called out Stephen A. Smith on “The Pat McAfee Show,” accusing him of going on a Taylor Swift-esque “media tour” discussing their confrontation, Smith fired back, reiterating that he would have retaliated had things turned physical.

“When he approached me sitting courtside at that game against the New York Knicks, when he rolled up on me I didn’t know he was gonna roll up on me,” Smith said. “I had no idea, but when he said what he had to say I was in no position to give any kind of retort without making a scene.”

“It was on national television, the cameras were rolling and had I done something what do ya’ll want me to do?”

Smith then doubled down, saying he would have thrown a punch if necessary:

“You want this to be a reincarnation of Chris Rock and Will Smith? And let me state for the record, while we bring that up, let me assure you it would not have gone down like that."

"I would have gotten my ass kicked, because had that man put his hands on me, I would have immediately swung on him. Immediately. That I'm not gonna tolerate."

The Will Smith-Chris Rock incident occurred at the 2022 Oscars after Rock joked about Jada Pinkett Smith’s alopecia.