Lance Stephenson Goes Brooklyn Style On LeBron James And The Cavs

Source: Joe Robbins / Getty

NBA fans are loving the first round matchups so far.

As @world_wide_wob pointed out on Twitter when the playoffs tipped off, the opening round is packed with social media-driven drama.

https://twitter.com/world_wide_wob/status/984263461906649088

Lance Stephenson and LeBron James continue to add to their meme-fueled feud in their 2-2 series, thanks mostly to Lance’s relentless aggression.

In last night’s loss to the Cavs, Lance almost willed his team to a win with some scrappy (and cleverly-timed) theatrics.

As @infinitewords14 put it, “Lance Stephenson plays with the spirit of beef & broccoli Timberlands stepping down Nostrand every game.”

Throught Sunday night’s game, Stephenson bullied the Cavs into jump balls, turnovers and poor decisions, including a technical foul on James.

In post-game interviews, LeBron compared the moment to getting caught by the teacher afternoon laughing at someone else’s joke.

LeBron said of his tech: “Lance told me a joke, I laugh, teacher caught me, now I gotta go see the principal.”

Keep flipping for more of the storylines from the #2018NBAPlayoffs.

From Giannis Antetokounmpo’s multiple attempt on Aron Baynes’ life, to @JoelEmbiid and @YoungWhiteside’s war of words on social media, here’s the threads to track after the game’s over.

Some people think that the Greek Freak has a case for MVP this year, but Celtics big man Aron Baynes probably wouldn’t cast a vote if he had one.

Baynes did admit before the playoffs started, “It’s going to be a team effort. It’s not one man’s job. It’s four or five men on a string. … He’s very talented and he’s a great player so we’re going to have to lock in and do a job collectively on him.”

Baynes’ won’t soon forget the times he almost lost his life at he other end of these Greek Freak throwdowns.

Giannis only complete two of his four attempts on Baynes this year, but the trend was not lost on NBA Twitter, or either player.

Baynes has spoken about the dangerous nature of his job with the media several times.

In game one, Giannis Antetokounmpo put up 29 points, 11 revounds and 6 assists while Celtics big shot Jaylen Brown (24 PTS, 4 REB) did his best to steal a win in Milwaukee.

Watch the highlights below.

LeBron and Lance are both OG’s at this point, but neither is above the level of pettiness that the playoffs often bring out.

If you remember the ear-blowing and trash talk they engaged in back in the 2014 playoffs, you know this match-up will be entertaining no matter what the score is.

Joel Embiid vs. Hassan Whiteside is a battle of the big men that will definitely spill into the tweets and comment sections at some point.

In the pre-season, Embiid trolled Whiteside into making social media promises he couldn’t deliver. Then when hey met on the court, The Phantom Of The Process taunted Whiteside into fouling out early.

Embiid already posted his roadmap to the NBA Finals on Instagram, and Whiteside’s Heat happen to be the first obstacle in their path.