The NBA knows drama - part of the reason they have a TV deal with TNT - and last night during pregame at the Lakers game, there was some gorgeous drama going down courtside.
Watch as LeBron James literally scolds sports commentator Stephen A Smith, apparently for covering LeBron's son, Bronny, who also plays for the Lakers, in a negative way.
Stephen A had to respond to this, of course:
A little background here, LeBron James is obviously one of, if not the, best player in NBA history. His son Bronny is a below-average NBA player who only got drafted by the Lakers because he's LeBron's son and they wanted to do a cool thing by having father and son play on the same team.
Bronny's a great basketball player, don't get me wrong, but even great ballers sometimes aren't good enough to make the league. It's sad what the Lakers are doing to Bronny, forcing him to play in a league he simply cannot keep up with.
For instance, look at some of these highlights (starting at 20 seconds):
That's obviously one of the Stephen A takes LeBron is getting at with this courtside confrontation.
Here's another one:
Personally, I think Stephen A's take on Bronny is correct. There's nothing more embarrassing than playing bad basketball in front of thousands of people. The Lakers need to stop doing this to Bronny and let him continue his growth in the D League (minors). It's actually not insulting at all to say this. What is insulting is what the Lakers are doing to Bronny.
He has potential, but you just can't force it like this.
Also, the most obvious argument here for Stephen A's side is that Bronny is a professional basketball player playing for one of the most recognizable teams in the league. So of course he's going to face criticism. It's part of the gig. Dumb, but part of the gig.
Now, there was a bit more hilarity to the exchange between LeBron and Stephen A.
Stephen A was actually sitting near comedy writer and actor Larry David.
As a fan of Curb Your Enthusiasm, I can honestly say that I've made up several great scenes in my head that could've played out once the cameras cut to Larry David after the above exchange, and they're all…
I'll leave Dave Portnoy's take here for more context:
P.S. Now check out our latest video 👇
