The history being made by LeBron James and his son Bronny James has been well-documented in the two weeks since the Los Angeles Lakers selected the USC guard in the second round of the 2024 NBA Draft. For the first time in league history, a father and son will be playing on the court at the same time. But the move by L.A. hasn’t been without its critics.
Fans have highly criticized the Lakers and LeBron for nepotism, arguing as though Bronny is not himself deserving of a spot on an NBA roster and is simply there because of who his father is. The Lakers and LeBron have both laughed off this claim, as they believe Bronny has more than earned his place in the NBA.
Bronny, though, has remained relatively quiet on the subject, despite admitting in his introductory presser that he sees the things said about him on social media. But his quiet nature, as LeBron says, is because his son is much better about blocking out criticism than he is, according to Dave McMenamin of ESPN:
“I don’t know if people really understand Bronny,” James told ESPN as part of a wide-ranging interview after USA Basketball practice Sunday in preparation for the Paris Olympics. “He doesn’t care. I actually care a little bit. When I came in [as a rookie], I wanted people to like me and some of the things that people were saying about me kind of bothered me early on in my career. … He doesn’t give a f—.
“He does not care about nobody. He doesn’t even listen to that stuff. He’s like the coolest. He’s like the complete opposite of his dad. His dad will say something [to address the critics]. Bro does not care. … Everything that’s being said about him, he really does not care.”
LeBron also admitted that if he had grown up in the same circumstances as Bronny, he’s not sure that he would have the same work ethic or passion toward the game:
“Just imagine if you were a kid, you were born into a situation where your dad was super famous, super wealthy and you the kid still had the drive to want to be able to accomplish things for yourself,” LeBron continued. “I personally don’t know if I would’ve been able to do that if the roles were reversed. …
“When I was coming up, I had no choice. I literally had no choice. … I had to make it out for me. My mom, my family, my hometown, my city. Bronny has all the choices in the world. If Bronny wants to stop right now or never played basketball or just wanted to be a gamer or wanted to be a chef or wanted to be nothing to whatever, he could have done that. … People don’t understand how hard that is and the commitment for him to be coming out of heart surgery less than a year ago, for him to be able to be in the NBA, the kid, he’s special.
“But he doesn’t care. He doesn’t. It doesn’t bother him.”
Bronny, by all accounts, seems to be a dedicated player who is ready to put in the work necessary to succeed on his own in the NBA. And while his name may have been a contributing factor to his draft stock, NBA teams do not give away roster spots to undeserving players.
By virtue of making an NBA roster, Bronny has proven that he has the ability to belong. Now, it’s up to him to keep the work going.
Bronny James praises Lakers fans for Summer League turnout
Bronny James was surprised by the way that Lakers fans represented themselves at the team’s California Classic opener in San Francisco. He said it was his biggest surprise of the day and shouted out fans of the purple and gold for being there in droves.
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