The LeBron James mural outside of Baby Blues BBQ in Venice, California won't be vandalized again. That's because the muralist who created it, Jonas Never, has decided to repaint the wall white after the artwork was defaced for the second time in five days.
The original mural, depicting LeBron in a Los Angeles Lakers jersey, included the text "The King of L.A." After a disgruntled fan scribbled phrases such as “LeFraud,” “We don’t want you,” “No King” and “3-6,” in reference to LeBron's record in the NBA Finals, over the mural, Never returned to touch things up and omitted the word "of" in hopes that fans would leave the piece alone.
"I got a ton of support," Never said, according to ESPN. "At first when we had the original piece, there was a ton of positivity, but also a ton of like pro-Kobe, anti-LeBron sentiment. [Some] people didn't like it in general, not necessarily the work, but the sentiment that went with it. People had a big problem with the word 'of.' I get where they are coming from."
As it turns out, some fans still had an issue with it and once the mural was vandalized again, Never decided to just wipe the slate clean. According to ESPN, Never has plans to do another mural, featuring several members of the Lakers, for Spectrum SportsNet, the network that televises the Lakers.
"I thought I had learned a long time ago to never touch religion or politics," said Never.
"I guess it is never touch religion, politics or anyone against Kobe," Never cracked.
"I can't see anyone getting mad about the whole team," Never said of his next Lakers mural. "[Kyle] Kuzma, LeBron, Lance Stephenson blowing on LeBron."
Check out the footage of the vandalism in the video embedded below.