Stephen Jackson has some words for people clowning Daejon Love, the man accused of impersonating a San Francisco 49ers player as part of an alleged multimillion-dollar fraud scheme.
Love, 35, is facing federal charges after authorities accused him of posing as an NFL player while allegedly scamming more than two dozen women out of over $1.3 million. While the allegations have made Love the target of plenty of jokes online, Jackson believes some of the people laughing at him aren't much different.
"I see y'all laughing at the dude. Y'all ain't no better than him. A lot of y'all still got hoop dreams, y'all just ain't walking around with a uniform on," Jackson said in a social media video. "Y'all can't laugh at him because y'all do the same thing. The only difference is he's wearing a helmet and a jersey. Most of y'all are fake, and none of y'all know what you're talking about."
The former NBA player clarified that he was addressing people mocking Love for pretending to be an athlete, turning his attention toward sports fans who speak as though they have professional experience themselves.
"So how y'all gonna laugh at that dude for psyching himself out that he was a football player? A lot of y'all psyching yourself out, like you know about sports," Jackson said.
He continued, "Didn't make the church league, got cut from middle school, ain't never been in the professional locker room. But y'all wanna debate everybody about sports. Man, listen y'all just like this same clown."
Love and 18-year-old Taylor Jamie Chan were arrested by the FBI at Boise Airport on Aug. 24 after criminal complaints were filed in federal court in Oregon. Both face conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire fraud charges.
Federal authorities allege the scheme stretched back to February 2022 and involved women across multiple states. Love allegedly met victims through dating platforms including Tinder, Hinge, and Facebook Dating while presenting himself as a 49ers player.
According to the allegations, Love would sometimes have a 49ers jersey and helmet visible in his vehicle and maintained social media accounts featuring himself wearing team gear. He also allegedly provided women with fabricated information purporting to show that he played in the NFL.
Chan allegedly presented herself as Love's financial adviser and participated in FaceTime conversations where fake investment balances were displayed. Authorities also allege an iCloud message showed Chan referring to Love as a "vet manipulator."
Investigators said the NFL and 49ers confirmed Love was never employed by either organization.
The FBI has identified 26 alleged victims and believes there could be additional people affected by the scheme. Authorities say none of the identified victims recovered their money and investigators found no evidence that the promised investments were ever made.
Love made his first court appearance on Aug. 27.
