Former NBA sharpshooter J.R. Smith was arrested on a family violence charge in Texas in September, and bodycam footage of the incident reveals basketball was on the minds of the police officers at the scene.
Smith talked about his NBA career with the officers, and one made it clear he wasn’t a fan of the former Sixth Man of the Year’s most famous teammate.
An officer blamed LeBron James for the Luka Doncic trade, accusing the NBA legend of “stealing” the Mavericks‘ franchise player.
Here’s a look at the interaction between Smith and the police.
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LeBron James-hating cops arrest J.R. Smith
Bodycam footage from Smith’s arrest reveals there was some basketball talk before the longtime NBA guard was handcuffed and taken into custody.
After Smith told Royse City police about his career, an officer asked him about whether he had won a championship. “Two,” Smith replied, confirming he won with James and Kyrie Irving.
The officer was not a fan of James, it turned out. He referred to the now-76ers star as “he who shall not be named,” telling Smith, “he stole Luka from us, man.”
“Nobody was happy that day,” another officer chimed in.
Bodycam footage shows a police officer complaining about LeBron James and the Luka Dončić trade before arresting JR Smith (Via @nypost ) https://t.co/QRXBKf0WW8
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) November 3, 2026
Seconds after one officer said the Mavericks should’ve held onto coach Rick Carlisle to prevent Doncic’s conditioning from becoming a problem, another told Smith he had an active warrant for his arrest and placed him in handcuffs in a surreal moment.
As awkward of a moment as it was, everything between Smith and the officers seemed to stay totally cordial — just don’t bring up LeBron James in front of Texas police officers.
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