Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James responded to Fox News host Laura Ingraham's defence of New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees on her show on Wednesday night.

When Brees received condemnation for saying that he views kneeling protests against police brutality and anti-black racism as disrespectful to the American flag and national anthem, Ingraham called the criticism "Stalinist."

“I mean, this is beyond football, though,” Ingraham said. “This is totalitarian conduct. This is Stalinist!”

Her response contrasted with her commentary on James's criticism of President Donald Trump in 2018.

When James told ESPN's Cari Champion that Trump “doesn’t really give a f--- about the people,” Ingraham called James "unintelligible" and "ungrammatical."

"It's always unwise to seek political advice from someone who gets paid $100 million a year to bounce a ball," Ingraham said. "Keep the political comments to yourselves...Shut up and dribble."

James, evidently, did not forget about Ingraham's remarks.

"If you still haven’t figured out why the protesting is going on," James tweeted, "why we’re acting as we are is because we are simply F-N tired of this treatment right here! Can we break it down for you any simpler than this right here???? And to my people, don’t worry I won’t stop until I see."

A number of other athletes weighed in on Ingraham's view.

"KD and LeBron...sHuT uP aNd DrIbBlE! (sic)" New York Mets pitcher Marcus Stroman wrote. "Drew Brees...he’s allowed to have an opinion. I pray y’all see the problem there!"

Tennis star Naomi Osaka and Los Angeles Chargers wide receiver Keenan Allen also were critical of Ingraham.