Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James gave huge props to Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett on Wednesday night.
After a dominant performance where James defeated the Los Angeles Clippers in the largest fourth-quarter comeback of his 21-year NBA career, he made sure to shout out Garrett in his postgame interview.
Lakers Star LeBron James Calls Myles Garrett ‘Absolute Beast’
“(Myles) is an absolute beast,” James said. “Defensive Player of the Year for a reason.”
"(Myles) is an absolute beast. Defensive Player of the Year for a reason."@KingJames took time to praise our DPOY after completing the largest 4th qtr comeback of his career 💯 pic.twitter.com/6bBTzyCjNf
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) February 29, 2024
James and Garrett were lifting weights together in a video on LeBron’s Instagram on Tuesday. Standing next to Garrett’s massive 6-foot-4, 270-pound frame, LeBron looked more like Cavs star Evan Mobley’s 215-pound build.
James is one of the NBA’s most physically dominant players, but he sure didn’t look too imposing next to Garrett.
Garrett was named the NFL Defensive Player of the Year at the NFL Honors a few weeks ago. His selection was met with some criticism, as Pittsburgh Steelers superstar pass rusher T.J. Watt led the NFL in sacks with 19.
Before NFL Honors kicked off in Las Vegas, Watt tweeted, “Nothing I’m not used to,” presumably about being snubbed of Defensive Player of the Year.
Garrett only had 14 sacks, but had more pressures and helped lead the Browns to the playoffs after losing multiple starting quarterbacks throughout the season. Cleveland’s defense, headlined by Garrett, quickly became the NFL’s best in their first year with Jim Schwartz as defensive coordinator.
“I’ve always felt like it’s my job to continue to show the next generation the way, show them the blueprint, regardless of sport,” James said postgame.
James certainly has the blueprint for winning in Cleveland. The Cavs went to four straight NBA Finals when he returned home from the Miami Heat.
James has admitted previous interest in joining the NFL during the 2011 NBA Lockout. While he can’t do that anymore, he can still share his winning pedigree with the next generation of football greats.
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James is now a self-proclaimed Browns fan after spending time pulling for the Dallas Cowboys early in his career. He ended the city of Cleveland’s 52-year championship drought when the Cavaliers came back from down 3-1 against the 73-9 Golden State Warriors in the 2016 NBA Finals.
Cleveland is a football town, and now it’s up to LeBron’s workout partner, Garrett, to secure the Browns their first Super Bowl victory in the organization’s history.
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