As LeBron's career winds down with the shadows of time, he is now focused on the future instead of the past.
Winning Championships for the Los Angeles Lakers is in the past. I know it. LeBron knows it.
No one doubts LeBron's Basketball IQ. He also knows, deep in his heart, that Bronny is just another kid...
Let's step into the time machine, shall we?
Back in the year 2005, the Cleveland Cavaliers were 50-32 and they finished 4th in the Eastern Conference. The General Manager at the time, Danny Ferry, knew LeBron needed help, the roster was loaded with average guys and role players.
I am not being dismissive, LeBron James averaged over 31 points a game that year. Only 4 other players averaged in the double digits:
Zydrunas Ilgauskas - "Big Z" averaged 15.6 points per game. He was one of the Top 5 Centers in the NBA that specific year.
Larry Hughes - Averaged 15.5 points per game.
Flip Murray - Averaged 13.5 points per game.
Drew Gooden - Averaged 10.7 points per game.
No one except Ilgauskas was anything but average. I remember listening to talk radio that off-season with idiots calling and saying "we should trade Ira Newble, Eric Snow, and Damon Jones for (Insert another Team's All-Star here). Look it up, the money works."
The host would invariably hang up on the caller and yell "no other team is trading their all-star to the Cavs for their junk."
So in that off-season, the Cavs added average Scott Pollard, journeyman David Wesley, and three underwhelming draft picks.
Coincidentally, the Cavs had the 55th pick in the NBA Draft that year, the same exact pick the Lakers used on Bronny.
Danny Ferry, having come from the San Antonio Spurs' Management Philosophy, chose Ejike Ugboaja from Nigeria with Pick 55, hoping to replicate San Antonio's strategy when they picked Manu Ginobili with the 57th pick in the 1999 Draft.
Ferry's pick was a disaster, Ugboaja never played a game for the Cavs. As a matter of fact, Ugboaja never played ONE NBA GAME and washed out of the NBA-D League in 2 short seasons.
Where am I going with all this?
You may not know who Ejike Ugboaja is, I barely remember who Ejike Ugoaja is, but you know who remembers him, probably as clear as day?
LeBron James.
So when the Lakers picked Bronny, LeBron didn't see what the controversy was all about. I expect LeBron to try to stay in the NBA long enough to make sure Bryce is also picked late in the second round.
Picking any 2nd rounder is a crap shoot. I expect Bronny to put up a few points a game and bounce back and forth from the D-League to the Lakers. One magical night, next January, when the Lakers are down by 30, I expect Bronny to come in off the bench, when all the scrubs are in, and get hot and drop 12-15 points. Pundits will chirp that BRONNY HAS ARRIVED. Bronny probably has about a dozen double-digit NBA games in him.
For his career.
But here's the ruse. LeBron isn't grooming his kids to be champions on the court. He's giving them opportunities so they can be successful off the court.
If LeBron was all about championships, he could have been traded to a contender this year. He passed on that option.
When LeBron's career is finally over, he has stated, both on and off the record, that he wants to own a team. Let's just say that when he retires at 43, he starts to move to be the head of the new Expansion Las Vegas Ownership group. By the time LeBron can line everything up, it will probably be the year 2030 before that team starts to play.
LeBron doesn't want to be a hands on owner. He has a production company. He has his eye on Hollywood. He's already a part owner of Liverpool. But who do you think he wants running his expansion basketball team?
The experience Bronny James is getting right now is going to serve him well as the future General Manager/CEO of the Las Vegas [Basketball Team]. The experience Bryce James gets in 2 years will serve him well as the Director of Player Personnel of the Las Vegas [Basketball Team]. LeBron isn't grooming future NBA Stars, he's setting his kids up to be Front Office Executives in their late 20's/early 30's. If that's LeBron's goal, and I believe that's his real goal, that's some focused forward thinking that he's setting his kids up like that. That makes LeBron a Great Dad.
Lots of successful businessmen use giant corporations to get their kids a step up on their peers. As a matter of fact, it's a practice so prevalent in America, it has a name-
But you know what? I'm not as young as I used to be. That exact term escapes me...
Something...Privilege.
By getting his kids into the NBA, whether they belong there or not, they are learning, first-hand, about the processes of the league
Your question should be: "But how does drafting Bronny James help the L.A. Lakers?"
If LeBron and Bronny played together for the Sacramento Kings, the duo would have helped that franchise by selling tickets.
But since they play for the Lakers, who are supposedly all about winning, the answer is "drafting Bronny doesn't help the Lakers at all."
Not one bit. But if you confronted LeBron about nepotism, he would counter: How did abysmal draft picks like Ejike Ugoaja or Christian Eyenga help the Cavs back in the day?
Dr. Jerry Buss would have had nothing to do with this set up.
Side Note:
Technically, Bronny is already better than Ejike Ugboaja.
If Bronny plays a total of 50 NBA games coming off the bench, he'll be better than Christian Eyenga.
Who's Christian Eyenga?
Exactly.
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