The 2023 World Athletics Championships were recently held in Budapest, Hungary. Anticipating victory from all sides, the event had the attention of various American people and athletes. From the looks of it, the legends associated the NBA weren’t so far behind in admiring their national talents.

Barely a few weeks after Noah Lyles’ controversial remarks rocked the world of basketball, Isiah Thomas, the legendary point guard for the Detroit Pistons took to social media to promote one of Lyles’ biggest supporters.

Isiah Thomas highlights Sha’Carri Richardson’s win on social media

The Athletics championship event saw the American athletes dominating in a big manner, taking home 12 gold, 8 silver and 9 bronze medals. Amongst the list of sportspeople who brought home the accolades for their country was 26-year-old field and track runner Sha’Carri Richardson.

Only two days after winning her first major individual title on the international stage, Richardson was back to participate in heat 2 of the 200m semi-finals dash.

Richardson was easily able to run past her opponents and secure the first position with a time of 22.16 seconds. While the runner would only go on to win the bronze medal in the 200m final, her impressive time was able to give her team a fighting chance.

Richardson’s semi-final dash was highlighted by the official Instagram handles of World Athletics and Team USA. Featuring a slow motion video with the Spice Girls’ ‘Wannabe’ song playing in the background, the reel perfectly encapsulated the 23 year old’s career defying win.

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Recently, the reel caught the attention of two time NBA champion Isiah Thomas. He uploaded the same on his Instagram story to be viewed by his 660,000 followers.

Despite being primarily associated with basketball, Michael Jordan’s on-court rival respects the athletic spirit of Sha’Carri Richardson.

Richardson supports Noah Lyles

26-year-old Noah Lyles was successful in bagging three gold medals at the Athletics Championships. While this would have got him universal praise, his later remarks about the NBA caused him some trouble.

“World champion of what? The United States?” said Lyles during the press conference.

The remarks generated wide spread criticism from various current and former NBA players. Even renowned rapper Drake didn’t hesitate in stating his opinion against the sportsman!

While everyone else was turning against Lyles, Richardson took the opportunity to stand beside her teammate’s opinion. Taking to X (formerly Twitter), the 23-year-old remarked that the NBA may have players from different countries but they do not compete against different countries.

“You have to go against the world in order to be a world champion!!” Richardson wrote in her tweet.

What are your thoughts on Sha’Carri Richardson defending Noah Lyles? Let us know in the comments down below.

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