NEPO BABY IS WHAT WE’LL CALL BRONNY AS LEBRON BRINGS HIM TO THE LAKERS
Shame on other NBA franchises for letting the James Family Tree take over the entire draft, with Bronny selected at No. 55 to join his father on a training-camp roster when he’s undeniably flawed
The new media package is $76 billion. That would have inspired me as an opposing general manager to manipulate Thursday’s proceedings. Damn right, I’d have selected Bronny James before the 55th pick in the NBA draft, based on my competitive verve — actually, my badass fire — to show his father that he can’t have what he wants. LeBron James has won four championships in 21 seasons. He can fail an 18th time with his kid on a developmental deal in Utah.
Also, an n-word would be floating in my head: nepotism. What do we tell kids about the perils of life, when someone with power floats influence in unprecedented ways? If Bronny owned any other last name, he wouldn’t have been chosen and would have been instructed to improve his flawed game as a decent college player. Instead, now that he’s a member of the Los Angeles Lakers alongside his dad, nepotism has taken on a new and nauseous meaning.
A nepo baby, Charles Barkley will call him.
It means LeBron can tell the world that he wants to play with his son, though he struggled as a USC freshman, and that the rest of the league sat on its buttocks and let 54 picks happen. They might become the first father-son teammates in league history, which is absurd if not farcical. Bob Myers, who won four titles as GM of the Golden State Warriors, broke news on the ESPN telecast that teams were told by James’ agent not to ruin the day in the second round. This is the same Rich Paul who also represents LeBron and, as founder of Klutch Sports Group, is being sued in federal court by a former prime negotiator, Mark Termini, for more than $4.9 million.
Is Paul a crook?
Is Bronny a pawn?
“Beyond blessed,” LeBron wrote on Instagram.
Have executives in this game of dribbling and shooting basketballs become scared of Klutch? Are they so concerned about angering Paul and James that such nerve would cost them in the future? When $76 billion is at stake and head coaches lose their jobs routinely, including those who work for James, why would anyone give LeBron and the Lakers a mulligan? You noticed how Rob Pelinka, the GM, shook his phone in relief after calling Bronny with the news while the new coach, JJ Redick, applauded with a roomful of scouts. Why were they concerned that someone else would take Bronny? The entire planet knew about this weeks ago, months ago and years ago. Why celebrate? Or did LeBron, using his clout, suggest he might not return next season without Bronny?
Forget the dream of Dallas making a run at him. The Lakers and Paul have taken care of a legend — and a father and son will be in training camp in a few months. Bronny will be offered an NBA contract rather than a two-way deal, which might dampen reality that he needs light years of work to avoid embarrassing himself. His presence could become an intrusion, as Redick and Anthony Davis are trying to win and realize big-picture media are engulfed in a 20-year-old who cannot play. As it is, another legend has made news, with Hall of Famer and team commentator James Worthy insulting Bronny off the live microphone before Redick’s opening news conference.
“Who we gonna be waiting for on the second day?” said Worthy, according to LakersDaily.com
“Dude, just wait until you have to f-–king talk about it that night,” someone else said. “It’s going to hit, it’s going to hurt us.”
“Well, he’s the greatest young player ever right now, that’s Bronny — that’s what I’m gonna say,” Worthy said.
Redick is the third coach in five years, stunningly. “Then they got the right coaches in there. So they did it right. … They took their time,” Worthy said. “They waited, while we were trading Ingram, Randle, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope gone, brother up in Sacramento, Malik gone. Then we weren’t getting anything for it. Westbrook gone. So, the ink will lead back to the problem, which is in that infrastructure.”
The infrastructure might replace Worthy when Pelinka should be dismissed for allowing the James family storm to happen. “In the history of the NBA, there's never been a father and a son that have shared an NBA basketball court and that feels like something that could be magical,” Pelinka said. “We know, and have to respect, of course, that LeBron has a decision on his opt-out ... but if it worked out that he was on our team next season, NBA history could be made. And NBA history should be made in a Lakers uniform.”
A what? A decision? It shouldn’t be long before LeBron praises Dalton Knecht, the first choice at No. 17, as a Rookie of the Year candidate … with Bronny. All he wants is for his son to connect once or twice, as Dalton pronounces his name. As free agency begins, the Western Conference again will be controlled by Denver, Dallas, Minnesota and Oklahoma City. The Lakers hope to reach a play-in slot.
Back East, the New York Knicks are making immediate impact. Mikal Bridges arrives, in a deal for loads of draft picks, and he’ll become the fourth Villanova member. Boston isn’t nervous, but Tom Thibodeau might be as coach. What if Bridges, Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart and Donte DiVincenzo fall short? Might college coach Jay Wright save them?
No, he already has said, enjoying his days as an analyst.
At some point, when a team was ready to pick 48th or 51st, ESPN played the same music used by the NFL on draft night. I’m surprised LeBron didn’t arrange for Jay-Z and Beyonce. Oh, they’ll be downtown on opening night.
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Jay Mariotti, called “without question the most impacting Chicago sportswriter of the past quarter-century,’’ writes general sports columns for Substack while appearing on some of the 1,678,498 podcasts and shows in production today. He is an accomplished columnist, TV panelist and talk/podcast host. Living in Los Angeles, he gravitated by osmosis to film projects.