After being drafted with the No. 52 overall pick in the 2024 Draft, LeBron James and his son Bronny became the first father-son duo in NBA history.
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However, along with this comes a lot of critics and accusations of nepotism, which has only grown after Bronny's latest performance in a loss (118-104) vs. the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday night.
Bronny James highlights vs Philly 🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/PcXg6gBjld
— Hater Report (@HaterReport_) January 29, 2025
Following Bronny's 0-for-5 shooting performance/3 turnover game, TV personality Stephen A. Smith had a message for LeBron on Wednesday's episode of First Take.
"I am pleading with LeBron James, as a father. Stop this." 😳 @stephenasmith reacts to Bronny James' play in the Lakers 118-104 loss to the 76ers. pic.twitter.com/bk5D0DS42N
— First Take (@FirstTake) January 29, 2025
"I am pleading with LeBron James as a father: stop this. Stop this," Smith said. "We all know that Bronny James is in the NBA because of his dad. The first game of the season, opening night, the Griffeys in attendance, father-son duo playing in an NBA game for first time, an absolutely, positively wonderful story. And then reality sets in."
He continued, "We love what we're seeing from him in the G League because that's where you belong as you honed your skills and you get better and you legitimately earn, which I believe he has the potential to do, I am rooting for Bronny James, it would be cruel to root against him. He's a wonderful kid, I wish him nothing but the best. But he's LeBron James' son and everybody knows what attention that brings."
In view of Bronny's young career, he has appeared in 13 NBA games, totaling around 44 minutes on the court, where he has scored 4 points (1-of-16 FG; 0-for-7 3P).
That is to say, with Stephen A.'s point of developing his game in the G-League, that certainly should be a focus for the 20-year-old hooper.
With this in mind, Bronny has shined in the G-League his rookie season.
In 10 appearances with the South Bay Lakers, he has averaged 16.3 points per game (23 ppg in 3 regular season games), to go with 4.2 rebounds, 4.2 assists, and 1.4 steals.
Bronny with the poster dunk and a team high 31 Points!
31 PTS (10/22 FG) | 5 3PT | 2 STLpic.twitter.com/uti17H4uMT
— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) January 25, 2025
The hype surrounding the son of the world's all-time leading basketball scorer may have influenced his spot on an NBA roster, yet it's what the fans want to see and is the dream of a lifetime for LeBron James to play with his first born.
LeBron coaching up Bronny in warmups 🙌
Eagles recording it 🔥 pic.twitter.com/QEeDgW0qbe
— House of Highlights (@HoHighlights) January 29, 2025
Bronny on his readiness 45 games in: "I feel like I'm a lot more prepared now." pic.twitter.com/DeYCClIA2c
— Spectrum SportsNet (@SpectrumSN) January 29, 2025
Related: LeBron And Bronny Make NBA History As First Father-Son Duo To Share The Court Together
