Hill: Before you cry nepotism, remember that LeBron’s son almost died

Sometimes we need to see even the most obvious things with our own eyes before we can process them.

Or in this case, see and hear those things.

There has been so much debate about LeBron James manipulating the draft and the Lakers organization to make sure he could play side-by-side with his son Bronny and whether it reeks of nepotism and entitlement.

While I’ve mostly taken LeBron’s side when this conversation has come up the past couple of weeks, it’s one of the rare cases where my opinion wasn’t strong one way or the other. I was certainly open to the assertion that James was completely out of line to put his immense power on the scales in the supposedly equitable draft process.

Then I sat in front of him as he addressed a throng of reporters at UNLV’s Mendenhall Center after Team USA’s first Olympic practice Saturday, fielding questions about what it will mean to put on the same jersey as his son in the NBA.

James made an obvious point that most everyone engaged in the discourse is well aware of, but often undervalues: Bronny James nearly died less than a year ago.

It’s a jarring reality that needs to be factored in with all the hot takes on the matter.

Perspective needed

The younger James collapsed to the floor and went into cardiac arrest during a workout at Southern California in July last year.

He spent three days in the hospital and was later diagnosed with a treatable congenital heart defect, finally getting cleared to pursue his basketball dreams again four months later.

Despite all the money, fame and accolades, LeBron James was faced with the possibility of losing a child, a fate that has crippled so many other families.

Through that lens, can anyone really be upset that he wanted to pull a few strings to be able to share an experience like this with his kid?

“I don’t know many kids who have worked so hard to get back to this point,” an emotional LeBron James said Saturday. “So much has happened over the last year with him. To have (him drafted) less than a year from his incident and to be able to be with our friends and family when they announced his name was super surreal, and our family still can’t find the words to explain the feelings that we had.

“Such a great kid, and I’m looking forward to seeing his progression as he continues to grow.”

Kind of puts it in perspective, doesn’t it?

LeBron James could have been planning his son’s funeral less than a year ago. Instead he’s about to be sharing a locker room and making history with him. How that happened starts to feel a little less important.

“It’s a dream come true for me,” he said. “Just to see him in the NBA alone is a dream come true. It’s always been a dream of his and for us to be side-by-side, a lot of words are lost, to be honest.”

‘Just enjoy the game’

Bronny James made his NBA debut Saturday, kind of. He started at point guard for the Lakers entrant in the California Classic at Sacramento, playing 22 minutes with four points, two rebounds and two assists at the same time his dad was practicing with Team USA in Las Vegas.

The elder James wasn’t concerned about the stats. He said he just wants to see his son start to get used to the speed and physicality of the NBA game while using his summer league experience to grow in each practice, film session and workout.

“Then with the game itself, just go out there and have fun and play team basketball just like he’s always done. Just enjoy the game,” James said. “He missed a big part of (his lone collegiate) season last year because of the incident, so he’s behind where he would have been if he had played the full year. But they say he’s getting better and better every day, and that’s what you want from him right now. That’s all that matters.”

Well, that and the fact he’s alive.

Think about that the next time you’re screaming at the bar about agent Rich Paul pulling a few strings to allow James and his son to play together.

Contact Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AdamHillLVRJ on X.