It’s been a long year for Bronny James. Drafted a year ago by his dad’s team, the Los Angeles Lakers, Bronny had an up-and-down rookie season as he shuttled from the NBA to the G League and back again. Bronny didn’t get many NBA minutes, but he acquitted himself pretty well with the South Bay Lakers, averaging over 21 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists per game.
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That didn’t stop the haters from making themselves known. Bronny had to endure charges of being a nepo baby all season because of his famous last name.
Kiyan Anthony knows what it’s like to be the son of a basketball legend. And like Bronny, he’s trying to forge his path on the court. Kiyan, who will be attending his dad, Carmelo’s, alma mater, Syracuse in the fall, appeared on his podcast, 7PM in Brooklyn, along with another son of a former NBA player, recent No. 2 overall draft pick Dylan Harper.
The young guys were asked what they took from watching guys like Bronny and Shedeur Sanders (Deion’s son), and the pair had some interesting answers. Harper said that Bronny and Shedeur are extremely different personalities, yet both still received an equal amount of hate online.
“At the end of the day, you’re still gonna get the backlash, no matter what you do,” said Harper.
Carmelo and LeBron were both part of the same 2003 draft class. And though Kiyan is more than two years younger than Bronny, he still empathized with what the former USC Trojan went through.
“Bronny, I kinda felt bad for him, ’cause that’s my guy. He doesn’t speak a lot, he [is] not gonna go on the internet and say what he [is] gotta say, but deep down, behind closed doors, he probably was going through it,” said Kiyan.
And despite all the negative press, Kiyan is a believer in Bronny’s game. “He’s nice, that boy. People trying to say he’s not good or he’s just there for his pops, I think he’s really nice, and I think he has a chance to prosper in the NBA,” he said.
Kiyan also has a vested interest in Bronny’s situation because he’s probably about to go through something similar. Like Bronny and LeBron, the comparisons between Kiyan and Carmelo are inevitable. All the more since he’ll be attending the same school where his dad won a national championship.
If Bronny can make it, there’s plenty of hope for Kiyan, as he’s a much higher-ranked recruit than Bronny was. A four-star shooting guard, Kiyan is seen as a top-35 player in the country by most recruiting outlets.
Their fathers, LeBron and Carmelo, had many memorable battles in the NBA. And though he and Bronny did face off as high schoolers, Kiyan hopes to be able to repeat that in the NBA someday.
