Stephen A. Smith is no believer in Bronny James… at least, not until last night. After the Lakers rookie dropped a season-high 17 points against the Milwaukee Bucks, Mr. Smith talked up the young guard and acknowledged that he may have missed the mark by questioning his NBA potential.
“I might have been wrong. Are you listening LeBron James, are you listening James family, are you listening Rich Paul, are you listening all you people? Because here’s my position: Bronny James needed to be in the G-League, let him be in the G-league his first year, and then after that let him come on because I’ve always believed that this kid has the potential, once I watched him, to be in the NBA,” said Smith. “But what I saw last night made me go ‘Wait a minute if he keeps showing up and playing like this then indeed he’ll be in the league as a bonafide player.”
Stephen A. Smith recently went viral for his confrontation with LeBron James, where the Lakers superstar called out the ESPN reporter for challenging his treatment of his son. The fans have turned on Stephen A. ever since and many of them were not buying his sudden belief in James Jr.
“Lol, he bowing the knee to LeBron. What a sellout. Stick to your guns,” wrote one angry fan on X.
It’s a major shift in tune from Smith, who had been very critical of Bronny before his encounter with LeBron and Bronny’s breakout game this week.
“This man truly is built to be a politician,” wrote Rusy Buckets on X, comparing Stephen A. to a lying politician.
Of course, some fans think Smith sold out too soon. It’s just one game, after all, and it’s far from evidence that James is set to dominate the NBA going forward.
“I’m sorry Bronny has one decent game in the NBA and now they’re praising him? Be for real people,” wrote one fan.
According to Smith, Bronny didn’t belong in the NBA and LeBron was putting him in a rough spot by putting him in the spotlight too early. During a segment on First Take, Stephen A. even pleaded with LeBron to end or backtrack Bronny’s career.
Bronny did not have an ordinary road to the NBA. As the son of an NBA legend, he inherited great expectations but he never let it get in the way of following his passion. Now, after being drafted 55th overall by the Lakers, James Jr. is living out his dream by playing alongside his dad at the highest level of play.
With averages of 2.3 points, 0.6 rebounds, and 0.6 assists per game this season, James still has a long way to go before he can play a larger role in the rotation but he’s showing signs of greatness and it’s enough for some of his critics to reserve course.
Unfortunately for Stephen A. Smith, it’s too late for him to make peace with the James family. He’s not on good terms with them and if Bronny succeeds in the NBA, it will forever be used against the ESPN journalist.
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