New York Mets mock LeBron James' social media hiatus with provocative post

The New York Mets' official X account mocked LeBron James on Thursday night following the Lakers star's announcement that he would be taking a break from social media.

The 39-year-old broke the news to his millions of followers across X (formerly known as Twitter) and Instagram the night prior, writing:  'And with that said I'll holla at y'all! Getting off social media for the time being. Y'all take care.'

James also added a peace sign emoji and crown emoji to the post.

With MLB's spring training not set to start until late February, the Mets' account announced they'd be going quiet too - by copying James' post verbatim.

Reactions were mixed to the team's post, with one fan telling the Mets not to 'mock my goat.'

Former Braves pitcher John Rocker had a strong reply as well, though he didn't appear to pick up on the James reference.

'What a dumb take from a miserable franchise,' he wrote.

However, many others found the homage humorous and one even claimed  it was 'one of the best posts this account has ever done.'

James has been known to take social media breaks - specifically during the playoffs - throughout his career, which he used to refer to as 'Zero Dark Thirty-23.'

The four-time champion is believed to have started the tradition in 2013, though he did away with it during the NBA's Covid 'bubble' for the 2019-20 postseason, when NBA players were away from their families.

James did not post on X during last year's postseason. 

On Wednesday, James announced the social media break after a post from Rich Kleiman - the longtime manager of Kevin Durant - slamming the negativity in sports coverage.

'We can all acknowledge that sports is the last part of society that universally brings people together. So why can't the coverage do the same? It's only click bait when you say it,' Kleiman wrote on X.

'When the platform is so big, you can make the change and allow us all an escape from real life negativity. I for one find it all a waste of breath. The Olympics and JJ [Redick] and Bron's show was the future of what this can and should all be.'

James posted a screenshot of the message and wrote 'AMEN!!', along with a salute emoji, before issuing his sign-off post separately.

James was also active on social media before and after the US presidential election, as she shared an anti-Donald Trump video. 

And after the Republican's victory, LeBron took to Instagram to send a message to 10-year-old daughter Zhuri.

'HEAVY ON MY HEART & MIND THIS AM MY PRINCESS,' he wrote alongside a photo of him holding his young girl.

'PROMISE TO PROTECT YOU WITH EVERYTHING I HAVE AND MORE!! WE DONT NEED THEIR HELP!'