It’s arguably one of the most inappropriate things an individual can do when you even remotely suggest to a parent how to decide what’s best for their children.
Considering I’m not a parent and have no expertise in that realm, I remain last on any list of potential sources to unwisely intervene.
That being said, l find it both unfortunate and downright sad when watching one of the greatest athletes of my lifetime applying maximum leverage in what’s clearly nothing more than a business powerplay by LeBron James and his agent to insure his eldest son gets the chance to run up and down the court in a regular season game at Crypto Arena this year with his proud Father on the wing with him.
You don’t have to be a parent to understand both the euphoria and the pride LeBron will experience when that occurs, but how it came together doesn’t even come close to passing the proverbial sniff test.
Enter one Bronny James who to date has only distinguished himself at the AAU level and was awarded a scholarship at USC when certain factions couldn’t cut a deal for him at Ohio State who was at the last time l checked, a football school.
After suffering a rather frightening cardiac episode while playing unorganized basketball he fought back and joined his teammates for a rather pedestrian type of season, one that certainly didn’t warrant a player of his caliber being drafted by any team in the NBA Draft.
However, the Los Angeles Lakers had other plans and in what can only be categorized as a point of negotiation for his father’s final contract with the team, it was agreed that Bronny would indeed be selected with the 55th pick in the draft and dispatched to Las Vegas for the NBA Summer League.
To make a rather embarrassing situation for the Lakers even worse,
Lebron’s agent Rich Paul, who now represents the entire James family regarding NBA matters, issued a rather lame and veiled threat to all teams that if they drafted Bronny, he wouldn’t play for them and a holdout for a trade would begin.
Despite the fact the Lakers being the only team in the NBA who were willing to keep his father happy and in the fold by squandering a draft pick, Paul superficially created a fake market for the young man’s services and then fleeced the Lakers financially for a guaranteed deal that totals nearly eight million dollars over a four-year term.
In essence the elder James who posted great statistics again last year, got another one hundred million for himself in a new contract and as a bonus, his son became a millionaire in his own right by virtue of hitting the biological lottery and being born into the James family.
Long time veteran NBA scouts have said repeatedly the young man isn’t pro material but it really doesn’t matter what they say, as it’s totally what LeBron and his agent think, and that is where the rubber meets the highway, and as far as they’re concerned you play it our way or else we’ll take LeBron’s talents to a new zip code, and let you explain to your season ticket holders what happened and who is at fault.
Clearly this comical arrangement was in place months ago and can only be categorized as another example of who runs the Lakers.
Noticed l said runs as opposed to owns as LeBron had total control of this debacle (kind word for it) for some time and the artificial threat of him going elsewhere to finish his career influenced a rather naive owner and obviously totally incompetent General Manager to boot.
LeBron had no other options as a player, but he leveraged what little star power he still has to put the Lakers even further away from championship contention, and considering how poorly they played this past season, that speaks volumes for the art of his deal.
While l wish Bronny James great health and success in his life, l also think he has been placed in a bad situation, one that can easily deteriorate into something even his father cannot remedy for him.
It’s hard enough being LeBron’s son and now having your every move both on and off the court closely scrutinized is another layer to a rather dysfunctional onion, one that could have been avoided without ego and money playing pivotal roles.
For those of you who feel I’m wrong l would simply ask how much you know about today’s NBA and the power that even aging superstars wield. You don’t need a weatherman to determine which way the wind is blowing in this one, and the weather just may get worse in Lakerland after they hired another LeBron favorite to be their new coach, despite having absolutely no coaching credentials to date.
It’s a zoo in Los Angeles right now but as long as LeBron and his group are happy and the cash registers are singing, who needs another pesky championship banner?
Danny Bridges, who would love to be wrong about Bronny James, can be reached at 317-370-8447 or at bridgeshd@aol.com.
