LeBron James and Tristan Thompson have a history as they were teammates between 2014 and 2018. They even won a championship together in 2016. Now, LeBron is thriving as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers while Thompson is struggling with the Cleveland Cavaliers. On Monday night, the Lakers took on the Cavaliers in Los Angeles and the Lakers won the game by a blowout. The whole thing wasn't particularly close and LeBron came through with a 31-point performance.
Despite the huge win, there was one play where Thompson got the best of LeBron. As you can see in the clip below, Thompson gets the ball below the rim and goes for a huge dunk on LeBron's head. Instead of leaving the play at that, Thompson stared down LeBron before he was able to inbound the ball.
Fans immediately recognized this play and the clip made its way to social media. Stare downs are typically a sign of disrespect although they can also display the competitiveness of those who do them. The Cavaliers were trying to make a statement against the Lakers and Thompson's actions were a representation of that.
With the win, the Lakers improved their record to 33-7 and are firmly at the top of the Western Conference standings.