LeBron James visibly upset after fan hugs him on Lakers bench in win vs. Thunder

The X (Twitter) video was shared by sports news website Clutch Points

LeBron James visibly upset after fan hugs him on Lakers bench in win...

LeBron James, Lakers star vs. ThunderLAPRESSE

Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James was visibly upset after a fan wrapped his arms around him on the sideline during the team’s home victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday night at Crypto Arena, according to Clutch Points.

James, 39, can be seen looking bothered in the X (Twitter) video shared by the sports news website, but the actual incident in question was not recorded.

Clutch Points claims the fan was kicked out of the arena.

Neither James nor the Lakers have issued a statement regarding the sideline altercation, but the bigger issue is why the security allowed the fan near the bench.

The night was a success for the Lakers despite James’ troubles with the fan, defeating the Thunder 112-105 to improve to a 20-21 record.

James and Anthony Davis combined for 52 points, with the latter putting up a couple more, and four other Lakers also had double-digit scoring.

Rapper and Lakers superfan Ice Cube is the latest to mock LA’s In-Season Tournament banner

The NBA Cup is not yet taken as seriously as the Finals

Did Ice Cube (left) minimize the accomplishment of James (right) and...

Did Ice Cube (left) minimize the accomplishment of James (right) and the Lakers?Lapresse

The Los Angeles Lakers‘ NBA In-Season Tournament win may only have been five weeks ago — but it feels like a lifetime ago for one of the Association‘s most successful franchises, as Los Angeles has tumbled down the standings since that night in Las Vegas.

One of the Lakers‘ most prominent and visible fans on Monday seemed to minimize the accomplishment of winning the NBA Cup. Rapper and Los Angeles native Ice Cube, who now runs the Big3 basketball league, criticized the Lakers’ decision to hang a banner in honor of winning the tournament — which will need several years and potential rules tweaks to come anywhere close to the stature of the NBA Finals.

Ice Cube: That’s not a banner, it’s a certificate

During an appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show” on Monday, Ice Cube made it clear how he feels about the NBA Cup, referring to the banner raised in commemoration of the Lakers’ triumph as a “certificate” and a “napkin.”

“It’s really about winning the real deal,” Cube said, referring to the NBA Finals. “You know, we usually don’t hang nothing up but championship banners, so I guess this is cool if we need some extra, you know, window dressing. … It’s a napkin. You know we need a real banner.”

The dig drew laughs, but Ice Cube is far from the only NBA fan who holds this view about the league’s first foray into an in-season competition prior to the playoffs. Fans and players alike did not like the tiebreaker rules that determined which teams would emerge from the initial group phase, while the Lakers’ banner — with spaces included for future NBA Cup wins — drew criticism from Ron Harper and Shaquille O’Neal, both of whom won the Finals with Los Angeles in 2000 and 2001.

Lakers’ playoff odds

Despite winning the inaugural NBA Cup, the Lakers have not been able to catch fire and rise in the packed Western Conference standings. Los Angeles has lost 12 of its 17 games — and as the season approaches the halfway mark, it is a genuine question as to whether LeBron James and the Lakers will get to play for the Larry O’Brien Trophy at all this year.

The Lakers are 11th in the West with a 19-21 record after a loss to the Utah Jazz on Saturday. Los Angeles trails the Jazz and the Houston Rockets by a half-game in the standings, and it needs to finish 10th to qualify for the Play-In Tournament — or no worse than sixth to make the playoffs outright. The Lakers are four games behind the Dallas Mavericks for the sixth seed, which is a big gap to make up between now and April.