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NBA star LeBron James has rejected critical statements by football professional Zlatan Ibrahimovic about his social commitment.

"I'll never be silent about things that I think are going wrong," said the Los Angeles Lakers player after the 102-93 win on Friday night against the Portland Trail Blazers.

He decided to talk about things that were happening in society, including social injustice, racism and problems with voting.

"I will use my platform to shed light on everything that is happening in this country and around the world," said James.

"I would never just stay in sports because I understand how powerful this platform and my voice are." His German Lakers colleague Dennis Schröder agreed.

"Any athlete can use our platform and try to make a difference in this world," said the point guard.

Ibrahimovic is "a little different", a unique player with a unique character.

"I will never be silent," says LeBron James (r.)

Credit: USA TODAY Sports / Kirby Lee

Ibrahimovic, who today kicks off at AC Milan and previously played for LA Galaxy in Los Angeles, recently criticized James and other socially committed athletes in an interview with Discovery Plus.

"He's phenomenal at what he does," he said of James.

“But I don't like it when people with a certain status deal with politics at the same time.” Rather, you should stick to what you do best, he said.

“I play football because that's what I'm best at.

I'm not into politics. "

When Ibrahimovic spoke about racism

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James countered.

"It's funny that he of all people says that," he said now.

It was Ibrahimovic himself who spoke about something very similar in Sweden in 2018.

The footballer had told the French TV broadcaster Canal Plus about subliminal racism in Sweden and the lack of respect for his surname: "I'm 100 percent sure that it exists because I'm not Andersson or Svensson."

Ibrahimovic, born in Malmö, is the son of a father from Bosnia and a mother from Croatia.

After an incident in the Milan derby against Inter, he had denied any form of racism just a month ago.

“There is no place for racism in Zlatan's world,” the 39-year-old AC Milan striker wrote on Twitter.