LeBron James appears to reveal what Stephen A. Smith said regarding Bronny that ticked him off

[ad_1]

ESPN host Stephen A. Smith, left, was confronted by LeBron James last week over comments Smith made about James’ son and Lakers teammate Bronny James. (Stephanie Scarbrough, David Zalubowski / Associated Press)

LeBron James appears to have revealed what Stephen A. Smith said regarding his son, Bronny, that got him so upset that he confronted ESPN’s “First Take” host Thursday at the Lakers’ home game against the New York Knicks.

Interestingly enough, James made the apparent revelation to one of Smith’s ESPN colleagues — Richard Jefferson, who won an NBA title with James as a member of the Cleveland Cavaliers and now works as an NBA analyst for the network.

Before the Lakers’ game against the Boston Celtics at TD Garden on Saturday night, James shared a light-hearted moment with Jefferson, who was on hand to call the game on ABC with Mike Breen and Doris Burke. The ex-teammates’ brief exchange wasn’t aired, but footage surfaced in which bits of their conversation can be heard.

One remark by James seems to make it clear they were discussing the NBA’s all-time leading scorer’s beef with Smith, with James apparently explaining what it was that got under his skin.

“Once he talks about, ‘I’m pleading with you as a father,’ I can’t,” James sounds like he’s telling Jefferson.

Read more: Stephen A. Smith says LeBron James confronted him as ‘a daddy’ — not star player — over Bronny comments

James seems to be referencing a January rant by Smith after Bronny played a season-high 15 minutes 26 seconds for the Lakers, but the rookie didn’t score, missing all five of his field-goal attempts in a 118-104 road loss to the Philadelphia 76ers on Jan. 28.

“I am pleading with LeBron James as a father: Stop this,” Smith said on “First Take” the following day. “Stop this. We all know that Bronny James is in the NBA because of his dad.”

Smith added: “How are you doing him favors? We know that he’s not ready yet. And I’m saying this with compassion. … You know what these numbers mean. You know what it’s going to do to your son, to people that are missing out on opportunities, that are busting their tail on other NBA…

[ad_2]
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/article/lebron-james-appears-reveal-stephen-222033601.html

Author : LA Times

Publish date : 2025-03-10 22:20:00

Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.