LeBron James Denies Paying For Twitter Checkmark, Elon Musk Troll Job?

On Apr 21, 2023

UPDATE

3:06 PM PT — It seems like LeBron James might be at the center of an Elon Musk troll job … because a rep for James tells The Verge his account is NOT subscribed to Twitter Blue, despite what it says on the app.

UPDATE

LeBron’s page specifically states he still has the check because he’s “subscribed to Twitter Blue and verified their phone number” — but that’s also what it says for author Stephen King, who was highly critical of paying for the social media app as well.

UPDATE

King tweeted his own clarification on Thursday … saying, “My Twitter account says I’ve subscribed to Twitter Blue. I haven’t. My Twitter account says I’ve given a phone number. I haven’t.”

UPDATE

In other words, the whole thing seems like it could be Elon getting revenge on the haters by making it look like they went back on their word.

LeBron James claimed he was too cheap to keep his blue checkmark, but his account showed otherwise on Thursday — the Lakers superstar’s page is now officially subscribed to Twitter Blue.

Thursday marked the end of legacy verified accounts on Elon Musk‘s app — with the majority of users losing their badges unless they ponied up $8 a month to keep it.

As we previously reported, the King made his stance on the move crystal clear last month … saying, “Welp guess my blue ✔️ will be gone soon cause if you know me I ain’t paying the 5. ??‍♂️”

But someone on Bron’s team must not have gotten the memo … ’cause as superstars like Giannis Antetokounmpo, Russell Wilson and Aaron Judge said goodbye to the verify, his still has its badge.

The 4-time champ didn’t get any special treatment — his account’s check says he subscribed to Twitter Blue just like everyone else who wanted to keep it.

Tom Brady, Klay Thompson, Conor McGregor and J.J. Watt are on LeBron’s side — their accounts are all subscribed to Twitter Blue as well.

There are now two teams on Twitter — check and no check — so, pick a side and tweet away, folks.

Originally Published — 12:24 PM PT