Skip Bayless denies hating on LeBron James: “I hate the misconception that I hate LeBron James”

It's safe to say that TV analyst Skip Bayless has been the harshest LeBron James critic since the latter entered the league. Bayless is labeled as a "hater" because of his outrageous takes on James and for mentioning him in almost every other tweet or segment that he does on debate shows.

However, during the latest episode of his podcast, "The Skip Bayless Show," the Fox Sports analyst denied the notion that he hates LeBron. Here's what Bayless said:

"I hate to spoil this party, but I do not hate LeBron James. From the bottom of my heart, I don't hate him. In fact, I hate the misconception that I hate LeBron James. I just tell the truth... That often times nobody would tell."

Bayless hasn't been a fan of James being mentioned in the same breath as Michael Jordan in the GOAT conversation. Ever since James came into the league, Bayless has believed the "King" doesn't have the same clutch gene as Jordan, and that's why he shouldn't get consideration as one of the GOATs.

Jordan was the go-to shot-maker for his teams in the clutch during his career. Meanwhile, James has believed in making the right plays down the stretch, whether finding an open man or taking the shot himself.

Skip Bayless believes LeBron James is afraid to take the lost shot. He has also accused the LA Lakers superstar of not drawing fouls late in the game due to his inefficiency at the free-throw line.

The Fox Sports analyst claims that he has always had tremendous love and respect for James as a person, but his association with Jordan as the sport's greatest ever has baffled Bayless, and that continues to be the case.

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Skip Bayless considers LeBron James the most interesting man in all of sports

Skip Bayless' obsession with LeBron James comes from the fact that he considers him the most "interesting" man in all sports. Bayless suggests that there is always a lot going on in and around the LA Lakers superstar during every game.

He also believes that James makes the Lakers the most intriguing team in sports, apart from the Dallas Cowboys. Here's what Bayless said on his podcast about this:

"In all honest, I do love talking about and debating about LeBron and the Lakers. They rival my Cowboys as the most intriguing team in all of sports because LeBron is easily the most interesting man in all of sports... Every single night, there's something new with him."

LeBron carries a lot of weightage as a global superstar. Everything he does on and off the court is extensively covered by the media. This is what makes the Lakers a constant topic of conversation on almost every sports talk show, regardless of whether they are winning or losing.

As a team from Hollywood with a rich history, they certainly soar up the ratings, something Bayless conceded on his show. He said that the Lakers' absence from the playoffs last year saw a dip in his show's ("Undisputed") ratings.

For someone who live tweets about every Lakers game, Skip Bayless certainly couldn't have found a better situation to break down everything James does during and after a game.