When LeBron James and Bronny James checked in together for the first time, the sports world applauded the moment. Fast forward to now, and the situation has changed for the worse for the Los Angeles Lakers rookie. Legend of the game Charles Barkley feels one particular aspect has led to this situation.
He along with basketball fans have seen the struggles Bronny James has faced in his time with both the parent team as well as their G-League outfit. From scoring just four points in five games with the senior team to 10 points in two games with the South Bay Lakers, it has been going downhill.
Add to that, the hoopla surrounding the first father-son duo to play together has died down. Many point the blame at his father, LeBron James, for fast tracking his son to fulfill his own dream. Charles Barkley was asked if the Lakers handled this situation well while on the show The Bettor Angle.
It’s awful. The kid is not ready to play in the NBA. He should be in the G-League so he can play basketball. This thing where he’s only gonna play homes games. It’s stupid, it’s not fair to him. I don’t think they are doing Bronny any favors. They have just handled this thing very bad. It’s a bad look for the Lakers.
Charles Barkley said
The Inside the NBA analyst mentioned that the home games only situation is not helping Bronny James in any way. It limits his development, and it makes for an uncomfortable situation on both teams. Barkley feels the Lakers should have permanently assigned him to their G-League squad and let him develop over time.
Charles Barkley feels Bronny James’ woes impacts LeBron James’ legacy
The Hall of Famer feels bringing out Ken Griffey Jr. and his father during the opening night game was a clear indication that the Los Angeles Lakers were focused on marketing the situation. But now, that marketing has become dead as they continue to figure out how to help Bronny James improve.
Barkley has always mentioned that the rookie needs time to develop. To juggle between the two teams means the young star is missing out on developmental time. Now, all that is impacted his father’s legacy as the 61-year-old went on to say this.
I really like everything LeBron has done. But this is a bad look for him in my opinion.
Charles Barkley said
The former league MVP believes the entire fiasco surrounding the 20-year-old star is impacting LeBron James too. Barkley was appreciative of what James Sr. has done for his son. But with the way he is playing and proving to people that they were right in questioning his draft stock will bring more negativity on the family.
