LeBron James confronted Stephen A. Smith during the Los Angeles Lakers–New York Knicks game last night in what looked to be a heated exchange. Some eagle-eyed fans did some detective work and deciphered that LeBron told the media mogul to keep his son, Bronny James, ‘out of it’, with the ‘it’ presumably being related to any critiques or comments he makes about him in the future.
LeBron James: “I’mma tell you one time, bro. Keep my son out of this sh**, bro.”
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LeBron James is potentially referencing Stephen A. Smith’s controversial comments a few weeks ago when he asked the four-time NBA champion to ‘stop’ the facade that is Bronny’s NBA career. He believed at the time that James was setting up his son for failure by thrusting him into the spotlight when he just wasn’t ready for the pressure that came with it.
Smith caught a lot of criticism from fans online for his harsh words about LeBron and Bronny. All James did was help provide his son an opportunity to pursue his dream, something that any father in his position would have gladly done. So for Smith to use that as some kind of Sword of Damocles that hangs over LeBron’s shoulder and can be used to criticize him whenever Bronny underperforms is absolutely ridiculous.
Smith has been very critical of James as a player in the past, despite thinking very highly of him. He has often said that while LeBron James is the second-best player of all time, he will never surpass Michael Jordan. He has even called out James’s often-contentious relationship with the media. And at none of those points did the King ever confront Smith for what he said.
However, LeBron is a very proud family man who doesn’t tolerate any disrespect or slander against his loved ones. So it should come as no surprise that James finally had enough of Smith’s barbs at his family or using his son as a vehicle to shield his criticism. That is absolutely a fair thing to pull Smith aside for, especially if he has never confronted him over any of his other comments.
While James may not appreciate what is said about him by members of the media as it pertains to his playing career, he usually leaves it unaddressed as he knows better than to fan the flames that are being created to generate controversy. But when questions are raised about his character or his fitness as a husband and father, he responds with anger and tries to shut that down immediately.
Stephen A. Smith definitely crossed a line when he made the comments about Bronny James. Hopefully, this confrontation with LeBron reminds Smith that his habit of saying things on television to generate interest for ESPN and his podcast does have consequences, and he will pay the price when he goes too far. Accountability is important in media, and Smith relearned a powerful lesson about it last night.
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