During the Lakers’ preseason game against the Suns, LeBron and Bronny James became the first father-son duo to share the court in an NBA game. While many were in awe, some reiterated that the rookie was only playing in the league due to his father’s influence. Stephen. A. Smith agrees with the critics but is perplexed about their gripe with it.
Advertisement
On the Stephen A. Smith Show, the analyst called out those accusing Bronny of being a beneficiary of nepotism and argued that LeBron has earned the right to use his voice to get his son drafted by the Lakers. Smith said,
“He is on the Mount Rushmore of basketball and on top of it all, what he has done for the game is immeasurable. My appreciation and our appreciation collectively as basketball fans should always be as he would state ‘surreal’ to say the least. It is a damn travesty that you got people running their mouths, acting like it’s a problem that he got his son on the team.”
Smith claimed he’d even support Stephen Curry if he used his influence to help his son land an NBA roster spot. He argued that like LeBron, the Warriors icon reserves that right due to his impact on the sport. He said,
“If somewhere down the line, Steph Curry ends up having a kid in the NBA that gets to the NBA level, and that’s what Steph Curry wants, guess, it is worth consideration doing that for him too. Why not? When you’ve done that much to the league, when we spent decades profiting off your greatness.”
Smith also wants fans to exercise patience with Bronny and allow him to develop rather than chastise him for getting drafted. As far as development goes, there’s plenty of room for the young guard to grow.
A tough start for Bronny James
The rookie hasn’t had the best start to life in the NBA. He has shot 1-of-7 from the field in his first two preseason games and has committed five turnovers in only 29 minutes of action. His +/- of -28 is especially alarming. Bronny’s offensive inconsistencies were on full display during the Summer League too.
He put up 8.8 points per game on a subpar 35% shooting while committing 2.3 turnovers per game. It is a huge problem because Bronny is not a reliable ball-handler yet and hasn’t developed a strong passing game yet. Thus, he is an offensive liability on the floor.
He has made some stellar defensive plays but as a 6-foot-2 guard, he can be reduced to a non-factor against taller and stronger players. Thus, there is skepticism about his NBA future and it will take something special for him to build a sustainable NBA career.
