Subway rider who snubbed LeBron James says he didn't recognize basketball star

MIDTOWN, Manhattan (WABC) -- The New York City subway rider who snubbed NBA star LeBron James on a C train Monday is getting his 15 minutes of fame.

The rider -- James Michael Angelo -- was sitting next to James when he was recording a video for social media. When James turned the camera on him, Angelo said "Can you not" and put his hand in front of the lens.

Since then, Angelo has done multiple interviews with TV networks. He said he wants everyone to call him by a new name.

"Hi everybody, it's me James Michael Angelo, but I just want you to refer to me from here on out as 'can you not?'" he said.

Watch Angelo's full statement from his Instagram post:

It turns out Angelo -- or "can you not" -- is a comedian and real estate agent, and said he didn't know who LeBron James or the others were when they got on the train. He just knew they were big and taking up a lot of space on his bench.

James and fellow Cleveland Cavaliers teammates decided to opt for the subway instead of their bus, after realizing the subway would be much quicker than sitting in traffic.

"We had two options: A 45-minute bus ride or a six minute train," teammate Kyle Korver said.

Watch the full video posted by LeBron James here: