Defending NBA Champion Jaylen Brown recently came under fire after the 26-year-old proclaimed Bronny James to be someone who wasn’t cut out for the game’s professional leagues. The statement was made on Monday when Brown was sitting court-side at the Lakers v. Celtics Summer League game and addressed the comments to his girlfriend Kysre Gondrezick. These comments from Brown didn’t sit well with NBA legend Gilbert Arenas and the All-Star guard shot back at Brown using statistics from JB’s own Summer League performance from 2016.
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The former Wizards star went off on Brown for his hypocrisy, stating how the media didn’t make a big fuss when he started off cold, but highlighted how he wasn’t willing to extend the same courtesy to Bronny, who has had a slow start to his debut season in the league. He further added,
“Jaylen Brown, do you know what they said about him in summer league?.. He was the 3rd pick in the NBA Draft. The first three games, just like Bronny, Bronny was 6-26, and Jaylen Brown was 5-26 from the field in his first three games in summer league.”
"He [Brown] was the 3rd pick in the NBA Draft. The first 3 games, just like Bronny. Bronny was 6-26, and Jaylen Brown was 5-26 in his first 3 games in summer league.
Gil on Jaylen Brown talking about Bronny's potential pic.twitter.com/04XxQczdvS
— Gilbert Arenas (@GilsArenaShow) July 18, 2024
But Arenas’s research team seems to have slipped up in their due diligence as Arenas got his figures a little mixed up and an X user @JonJonLiddell even called out the former Wizards guard for the same reason. The X user posted a graphic of Brown’s first[ summer league game] to highlight the inaccuracy in Gil’s take and even wrote underneath it,
“I hate the Bron PR Team. They just be YAPPING/Confusing the youth about the history of the Sport— all in the name of Klutch Sports.”
Jaylen Brown 1ST GAME.
I hate the Bron PR Team. They just be YAPPING/Confusing the youth about the history of the Sport— all in the name of Klutch Sports. https://t.co/ycGD2U71xA pic.twitter.com/xgLQqa7Xil
— Caleb (@JonJonLiddell) July 18, 2024
In reality, Brown had a decent time in his Summer League debut. In Brown’s first game[ against the Brooklyn Nets] he scored 9 points in 19 minutes of play, and made 75% of his field goal attempts. JB’s other two games were against the Chicago Bulls and the Charlotte Hornets respectively, and he shot 57% and 51% in those appearances. So with Arenas getting his facts wrong once again, fans were sure to hit back at the player-turned-journalist, as one X user wrote,
“Why do you[ Gilbert Arenas] lie for LeBron and how much does he Le’pay you?”
Why do you lie for LeBron and how much does he Le'pay you?
— Gobbledegook. Babbleologist, PhD. (@Chefbyhimself) July 18, 2024
Another user @RedNationZ called out Arenas and his team for the lack of due diligence and even suggested Arenas stop lying on the show. The user wrote,
” Damn y’all really get on here and just lie. Get some fact-checkers on staff.”
Damn y'all really get on here and just lie. Get some fact checkers on staff.
— RedNationZ (@RedNationZ_) July 18, 2024
X user @Akrikanfreak1 further added fuel to the fire by highlighting Arenas’s history of absurd and downright inaccurate takes. The comment from the user read,
“Gilbert is never right about anything.”
Gilbert is never right about anything
— Jay (@Afrikanfreak1) July 18, 2024
Whatever possessed Gilbert Arenas to make these claims on JB’s performance seems unknown for now, but what we do know is that only one party has since come out and apologized. In the days since Brown’s apparent statements on Bronny, the man himself has rubbished all claims of what he said.