LeBron James accused of sharing ‘dangerous’ Covid meme

NBA icon LeBron James ignited social media debate after sharing a meme which suggests there’s no difference between Covid and the common cold or flu.

James posted a variation of the famous ‘Spider-Man pointing at Spider-Man’ meme with his 106 million followers on Instagram, adding the labels ‘covid’, ‘cold’ and ‘flu’ to each figure.

“Help me out folks,” James, 36, wrote along with a ‘shrugging’ emoji.  

Some claimed the post was a controversial message from the LA Lakers king.

“This is far too reductionist and plays into and reinforces a lot of the misinformation we've had over the past 2 years about ‘it’s just the flu’,” tweeted Dr Rajpal Brar.

“Yes, the landscape of Covid is changing and our tools are changing but portraying it like this isn't the way to do it.”

One fan said that as "the face of the NBA" James should be more responsible with his messaging, labeling the meme “dangerous and insensitive”.

James, who is fully vaccinated, was recently confined to the sidelines after a false positive Covid test.

Ryan Cole of the Athletic argued that the Lakers star could merely be venting his frustrations at the NBA’s testing process and Covid protocols – but still called the post “bad”.

Others, though, were delighted by the message. Barstool Sports boss Dave Portnoy said he and James could finally agree on something.

The Lakers have been hit by the loss of a host of stars due to Covid-19 protocols, but James will at least line up as they take on the Brooklyn Nets for their Christmas Day game.

The Nets will also be without several big names, including MVP candidate Kevin Durant, but will be able to call on James Harden.

Four-time NBA champion James tweeted that he was “excited” about the game, which will see him tie late Lakers icon Kobe Bryant for the most Christmas Day appearances ever in the NBA with 16.