Stephen A. Smith created a storm earlier this year with comments on Bronny James, which led to LeBron james confronting him.
Following the LA Lakers surprise loss to the Philadelphia 76ers several weeks ago, in which Anthony Davis suffered an early injury, Bronny James was thrown into the rotation.
It did not go well, and this led to critical comments. In an effort to shield the rookie from the criticism, Stephen A. Smith piled it on, pleading on ESPN for LeBron James to take him out the firing line, with a now infamous ‘as a father’ rant.
This led to LeBron confronting Stephen A. Smith mid-game when the Lakers beat the Knicks, bringing the situation to a head. But it is not done with.
When a heavily rested LA Lakers team took on the Milwaukee Bucks, they lost comprehensively. But without Bronny James it could have been far worse.
Bronny James scored a career high 17 points, breaking double figures for the first time and showing what he can do.
Coach JJ Redick praised Bronny James after the game, praising him for dealing with the external pressure he has had to put up with in his rookie year.
And of course, Stephen A. Smith has had something to say. Speaking on his own YouTube channel, he admitted there was an element of his thought process on Bronny James he was wrong about.
He said: “I might have been wrong. I thought that he should have been in the G League for the year.
“I still say he had potential, but I thought he might have been in the G League for the year, but if the brother gonna look this way, I got to give love where it’s due and say that Bronny James showed some promise.
“He looked composed out there, completely unfazed, had some nice ball handling skills, pulled up jump shot, hit a three pointer, got to the basket, hit a floater.”
After two decades circling each other, it is unlikely Stephen A. Smith and LeBron James will ever form a friendship.
The ESPN analyst says this will not stop him praising Bronny James when it is warranted: “Most people know, we ain’t got to like each other or ever talk to each other in life, for me to admit that you gotta give respect where it’s due.”
There was a point he wanted to make, issuing a reminder that from his perspective, LeBron James was wrong to call him out in the first place, claiming he had always backed Bronny James to eventually make it in the NBA, he just disagreed with the method.
He said: “But I want to use it as a reminder that the same dude that his daddy approached courtside is the same dude that said ‘I thought that he had this potential’. I just didn’t think it would be this season.
“See, I was never of the mindset that Bronny James would never make the NBA, go back and look at the clips. I said he got a chance. He just needs the right tutelage or whatever. Evidently, he’s getting it.”
