LeBron James Called Out By NBA Rookie

When the Indiana Pacers selected Bennedict Mathurin with the sixth overall pick in last Thursday's NBA Draft, they expected to get an explosive on-court performer. They likely didn't realize they were also taking in a rookie who has the outspoken confidence of a decades-in vet.

And that's exactly what Indy is getting in Mathurin, who wasted little time calling out arguably the NBA's best player, LeBron James.

“A lot of people say he’s great. I want to see how great he is," Mathurin said of James during an interview with Washington Post.

BENNEDICT MATHURIN CLAIMS TO BE LEBRON 2.0

You can almost see Pacers players and coaches wincing at the thought LeBron baptizing Mathurin come fall.

The Pacer rookie was born in June of 2002, just more than a year before LeBron made his NBA debut in October of '03. On that night, James scored 25 points and dished out nine assists. He's since become an unquestioned top-3 player in the history of the league.

As Mathurin sees it, James is at-best 2nd best all-time. "I don’t think anybody is better than me. He’s going to have to show me he’s better than me," Mathurin told the Washington Post.

What in the actual...?

Chances are James won't struggle to prove his worth. The 37-year-old Laker averaged more than 30 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists last season. Meanwhile, Mathurin averaged just under 18 points for the University of Arizona.

Follow along on Twitter: @OhioAF