Dwyane Wade, Chris Long Respond to Fox News Anchor's LeBron James Comments

Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade and Philadelphia Eagles defensive end Chris Long took aim Friday at Fox News anchor Laura Ingraham, who told LeBron James to "shut up and dribble" in light of comments he made about President Donald Trump. 

"They use to try and hide it.. now the president has given everyone the courage to live their truths," Wade posted on Twitter. 

Long responded by posting a thread featuring screenshots of entertainers who had previously been brought on the air by Fox News to discuss politics. 

"I'm sure the network she works for has interviewed a bunch of athletes, just couldn't find the screenshots quickly," Long wrote. "The point is, what's the prerequisite for who can talk politics? So, Fox News folks who agree with Laura... you okay with these segments?

"And if you reply 'stick to sports,' you should probably tune of out Fox News because they've got karate guys talking climate change on there. (Which I'm cool with... it's his right.) Unless it's just about you needing to feel like you've got control of athletes like LeBron."

Kevin Durant also gave his thoughts on the comments, telling Sam Amick of USA Today, “To me, it was racist.”

When asked by Amick how Ingraham's comments impacted him when he first heard them, Durant said, “It didn’t hit me. Ignorance is something I try to ignore. That was definitely an ignorant comment. I do play basketball, but I am a civilian and I am a citizen of the United States, so my voice is just as loud as hers, I think—or even louder."

The discussion has been facilitated by an appearance James made on Uninterrupted's video series Rolling With the Champion, where he discussed a variety of topics, including Trump (begins at the 5:30 mark), alongside Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant and host Cari Champion. (Warning: video contains profanity.)

"The climate is hot," James said in response to a question about calling Trump a "bum" in a tweet. "The No. 1 job in America, the appointed person is someone who doesn't understand the people. And really don't give a f--k about the people. When I was growing up, there was like three jobs that you looked [up to] for inspiration. It was the president of the United States, it was whoever was best in sports and it was the greatest musician."

Ingraham responded Thursday evening and essentially told James (and Durant) to stick to sports. 

"Must they run their mouths like that? Unfortunately, a lot of kids—and some adults—take these ignorant comments seriously," she said, per the Washington Post's Matt Bonesteel. "Look, there might be a cautionary lesson in LeBron for kids: This is what happens when you attempt to leave high school a year early to join the NBA. And it's always unwise to seek political advice from someone who gets paid a hundred million dollars a year to bounce a ball. Oh, and LeBron and Kevin: You're great players, but no one voted for you. Millions elected Trump to be their coach. So keep the political commentary to yourself or, as someone once said, 'shut up and dribble.'"

Ingraham later issued a statement, which was provided to B/R, explaining the remarks: 

"In 2003, I wrote a New York Times bestseller called 'Shut Up & Sing,' in which I criticized celebrities like the Dixie Chicks & Barbra Streisand who were trashing then-President George W. Bush. I have used a variation of that title for more than 15 years to respond to performers who sound off on politics. I’ve told Robert DeNiro to 'Shut Up & Act,' Jimmy Kimmel to 'Shut Up & Make Us Laugh,' and just this week told the San Antonio Spurs’ Gregg Popovich to 'Shut up & Coach.' If pro athletes and entertainers want to freelance as political pundits, then they should not be surprised when they’re called out for insulting politicians. There was no racial intent in my remarks - false, defamatory charges of racism are a transparent attempt to immunize entertainment and sports elites from scrutiny and criticism. Additionally, we stated on my show that these comments came from an ESPN podcast, which was not the case - the content was unaffiliated with ESPN."