Police make viral videos mocking LeBron James for ‘YOU’RE NEXT’ tweet after Ma’Khia Bryant shooting

The TikTok has been seen 270,000 more times than the 2.83 million average audience of an NBA game this season

An Ohio police officer’s TikTok responding to LeBron James has gone viral (Nate Silvester TikTok video)

A viral video of police mocking LeBron James has been watched more times than this season’s average NBA game ratings.

The TikTok video, seen by 3.1 million people, took aim at James’ tweet of a photo of a police officer with the caption "YOU’RE NEXT" following the fatal police shooting of Ma’Khia Bryant.

Ms Bryant was shot in Columbus, Ohio as she lunged at another girl while holding a knife, shortly before Derek Chauvin was found guilty of murdering George Floyd.

James tweeted the photo of officer Nicholas Reardon to his 50 million followers with the hashtag, #ACCOUNTABILITY, before deleting it soon after.

The video by TikTok user Nate Silvester, identified by Newsweek as an officer with the Marshal’s Office in Bellevue, Idaho, shows him mockingly seek advice from James over dispatch on what to do at a stabbing in progress.

"Why does that matter? OK, well they’re both Black," Mr Silvester responds.

"One guy’s trying to stab another guy with a knife, deadly force is completely justified. Aha. I see. So you don’t care if a Black person kills another Black person, but you do care if a white cop kills a Black person, even if he’s doing it to save the life of another Black person?"

After a slight pause, he adds: "I mean, it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense but then again you are really good at basketball so I guess I’ll take your word for it."

Mr Silvester makes a quick quip that Michael Jordan’s the greatest of all time before ending the mock conversation and leaning toward his car window to say: "Sorry guys, you’re on your own. Good luck."

At 3.1 million views, it’s been seen by 270,000 more people than watched the 2.83 million average viewership for the NBA’s 2020-2021 season, according to Showbuzz.

Other TikTok videos began to riff on the same theme but with less virality, with user @FernYanA asking "Chief Lebron" for advice on a "naked dude running down 5th Avenue", which was seen almost 118,000 times.

"Yeah, 90 degrees weather, yes, so, perfectly acceptable. Ok, you know better than us so, yeah, understand, I’ll go shoot some hoops then," he says.

James wasn’t worried about losing ratings from at least one establishment, as he mocked an Ohio bar owner who is refusing to show NBA games until the league expels the Lakers’ star over the tweet.

"Aww Damn! I was headed there to watch our game tonight and have a drink! Welp," he said.

The owner of Linnie’s Pub, Jay Linneman, wrote on Facebook that basketballers need to "just play the game and that’s it".

“Their opinion doesn’t really matter. They’re using their position to push their opinions, and that’s just not right,” Mr Linnerman said.

In deleting the "YOU’RE NEXT" tweet that kicked off the controversy, James said anger doesn’t do anyone, including himself, any good.

"Gathering all the facts and educating does though! My anger still is here for what happened that lil girl. My sympathy for her family and may justice prevail!” he said.

“I’m so damn tired of seeing Black people killed by police,” James continued. “I took the tweet down because its being used to create more hate -This isn’t about one officer.  it’s about the entire system and they always use our words to create more racism. I am so desperate for more ACCOUNTABILITY.”