The above photo of LeBron James, Prince William and Duchess Kate Middleton may seem harmless but it’s caused a bit of a stir in the British media.
Apparently, wrapping your arm around a member of the Royal Family is akin to an international incident as it breaks “royal protocol.” What protocol may that be, you ask? According to the official website of the British Monarchy, LeBron ran afoul of this time-honored tradition:
“There are no obligatory codes of behavior when meeting The Queen or a member of the Royal Family, but many people wish to observe the traditional forms. For men this is a neck bow (from the head only) whilst women do a small curtsy. Other people prefer simply to shake hands in the usual way.”
THAT FRIENDLY ARM WRAP IS NOT A NECK BOW LEBRON.
According to Dianne Marsch, the director of the New York Etiquette School of Manhattan, the body language of the Royal couple couldn’t have been more uncomfortable if LeBron had sat on Prince William’s face.
“The Duchess of Cambridge was very graceful and smiled, even though the look on her face when LeBron James placed his arm around her shoulder speaks volumes about her discomfort of being placed in that situation. Also, Prince William looks down at the jersey, but his body language is speaking volumes of how to handle this situation politely and he even looked away at one point.”
The horror.
The photo opportunity took about twenty seconds. Presumably, the Duchess and the Prince will survive the fallout of this clearly traumatizing incident.
