Shortly before the start of the season, Bronny James is heavily criticized. Is the son of basketball icon LeBron James good enough for the NBA?
A servant, Dalton Knecht to be precise, stole the show from the king’s son. While this other rookie with far less legacy put up an impressive 35-point gala, Bronny James had a poor evening. Again. And even before the NBA season has started, the question arises as to whether the offspring of basketball icon “King” LeBron James is actually good enough for the best league in the world.
“I’m just getting settled in,” said Bronny James a few days ago: “I’m going out there and gaining experience. I think that’s the most important thing. I just want to boost my confidence and feel more comfortable when I’m out there playing . I feel good. The numbers could be better.” No, they actually have to. Because for any newcomer, whether their father is the Los Angeles Lakers superstar or not, his stats would be a disaster.
LA Lakers: Bronny James hasn’t been able to convince yet
Five test games for the Lakers, an average of 1.6 points in 12.4 minutes and a field shooting percentage of 20 percent: These are hardly the numbers of a player who is ready for the NBA. Only on Friday night did he score just four points in 17 minutes in the 128:122 win against the Phoenix Suns, while first-round pick Knecht excelled.
If the doubters had their way, Bronny would probably be deported to the South Bay Lakers farm team before the start of the NBA. Fans on social media have been overwhelmed with malice for weeks. It’s not uncommon to hear that Bronny would have benefited from another year or two of college. Instead, he registered for the draft after just a weak year at USC, which cannot be assessed completely seriously because of his cardiac arrest the previous year.
Not a good decision, as we hear from the league. The expectations of the fans, of LeBron James himself and his agent Rich Paul “do not correspond to the reality of his game,” an NBA manager told the TV channel EPSN anonymously: “If they had a real idea of how far away Bronny is, They wouldn’t have done that.” Papa James himself recently blocked questions about his son’s situation. He is “a grown man, he can handle all the pressure himself.”
Despite all the criticism, it could be that Bronny makes history at the start of the season next Wednesday night (4 a.m.) against the Minnesota Timberwolves and will be on the court for the first time alongside his famous father in a league game. It was not without reason that the Lakers selected Bronny in the second round, 55th overall, in the summer draft.
LeBron’s dream of playing in the NBA with his son is well known. And the marketing value of this pairing is also extraordinary, as was shown when the two played together for the first time in a test less than two weeks ago. On the other hand, it is obvious that Bronny will be publicly counted out in a flash if things don’t go well. Just like currently.
