The NBA has sent a memo to its 30 teams to remind them of anti-tampering rules in the wake of the controversy caused by LeBron James' comments about playing with Anthony Davis.
LeBron got several league GMs riled up after declaring that partnering up with the New Orleans Pelicans center in Los Angeles would be "amazing". And the NBA's refusal to punish the forward didn't rub well either.
According to ESPN's NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski, teams were sent a memo stating that: "employment contracts are to be respected and conduct that interferes with contractual relationships is prohibited."
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"This principle is particularly important in today's media environment, where any actions or comments relating to potential player movement receive immediate and widespread public attention," it continued.
"Teams should be entitled to focus their efforts on the competition this season with the players they have under contract, without having to divert attention or resources to conduct or speculation regarding the potential destinations of those players in future seasons once their contracts expire."
James has since defended his statement by claiming that he sees nothing wrong with saying he wants to play alongside the league's best players.
"Ask me if I'd like to play with Jimmy Butler," he told reporters. "Say it right now. Ask me about Kyrie Irving, Giannis [Antetokounmpo]. Ask me about [Joel] Embiid, Ben Simmons. Go ahead, all of them. Luka Doncic. Ask me right now.
"Come on, guys, this is not rocket science. These are great players. Absolutely. I would love to play with a lot of great players. That is just who I am. People get caught up in bunches sometimes when they wish they could control what you say, and they can't control me, at all. And I play by the rules."
What This Means
LeBron likely meant no harm when he said what he said about Anthony. But his words could set things in motion, although it is already thought that the center's future was decided from the time he signed with James's agent.
If Anthony does end up in Los Angeles, the backlash could force the NBA to amend their rules and place particular focus on players speaking about other players in interviews.