Stephen A. Smith and Jay Williams defend LeBron James: 'We need more instances of Black nepotism.' (2024)

The Los Angeles Lakers drafting Bronny James has sparked rampant discussions about nepotism, a practice Stephen A. Smith and Jay Williams defended.

For all the criticism and backlash being directed at LeBron James and the Lakers after using their No. 55 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft on Bronny James Thursday evening, there’s another side arguing, ‘What’s the big deal, this happens all the time.’ Friday morning on First Take, Jay Williams argued it doesn’t happen enough for the Black community.

“Don’t we need more instances of Black nepotism? Especially when that person has the disposition and the demeanor of somebody that’s worthy of being put in that position.” Jay Williams on Lakers drafting Bronny James pic.twitter.com/bgn0ltMuSR

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) June 28, 2024

“I’ve been in a lot of rooms where I’ve seen people who aren’t worthy of the opportunity. And if you’re not worthy of the opportunity then I’m going to get angry about the opportunity you were afforded,” Williams said. “But I understand how the game is played. 99.9% of the time, none of those people look like us. And when I saw a lot of this chatter online from people that look like us, I’m like, ‘Hold on, don’t we need more instances of Black nepotism?’ Especially when that person has the disposition and the demeanor of somebody that’s worthy of being put in that position.”

Regardless of where you believe nepotism ranks in the laws of ethics, when you’re dad is LeBron James, you are worthy of nepotism. That’s not to excuse nepotism, that’s to note Bronny James was a perfect candidate to benefit from nepotism. That doesn’t, however, mean he is worthy of playing in the NBA after one season in college basketball where he averaged 4.8 points per game. Furthermore, is this even the best move for Bronny James and his development? Or is this just about giving LeBron the chance to live out his dream or playing alongside his son in the NBA.

Stephen A. Smith, however, was less concerned about Bronny’s credentials and more focused on echoing Williams’ sentiment that LeBron earned the right to get his son a drafted into the NBA.

Stephen A. Smith spoke for more than five minutes straight about the role nepotism played in the Lakers’ selection of Bronny James.

“We live in a country where nepotism has taken place with white folks religiously forever. We’ve said little to nothing about it. In the NBA… pic.twitter.com/U7v3lf38H4

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) June 28, 2024

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“We live in a country where nepotism has taken place with white folks religiously, forever,” Smith said. “We’ve said little to nothing about it. In the NBA specifically, in a league where at least 70% of the players are Black, we’ve seen nepotism with white folks all over the place. Ownership, executive ranks, player personnel, scouting, coaching, the list goes on and on. We’ve said little to nothing about it. And now this happens with LeBron James, a member of the Mount Rushmore of basketball, and all of a sudden you’ve got people running their mouths.”

“Yes, he has manipulated the proceedings somewhat, we get that,” Smith continued. “Bronny James would not be on an NBA roster if it were not for LeBron James…we all know this. We accept it. The issue is the resentment that’s emanating from people out there. How dare you resent LeBron James…America, not everybody, not most, but a lot of people are about, ‘stay in your place, stay in your lane.’ And LeBron James has religiously been about the business of defining his own lane.”

Shortly after the Lakers officially drafted Bronny James, Bomani Jones called out the media for not taking a stronger stance against this case of nepotism. And Friday morning, Jones pushed back on this First Take conversations between Williams and Smith.

“I can’t believe how many people this this unprincipled nonsense is defensible. Saying this on television is pathetic,” Jones wrote in response to Williams asking, “Don’t we need more instances of Black nepotism?”

Williams and Smith were focused on LeBron’s right to use his power and influence to get his son a job in the NBA. But they didn’t really address the larger concerns around this move. Yes, LeBron deserves to have more influence and power than any other player in the NBA, but he should also take ownership of that influence and power. If he wants a coaching change then just say it. If he wants the team to draft his son then just say it. Instead, LeBron and the Lakers attempt to spin it as if LeBron has nothing to do with these decisions, which is malarkey.

[First Take]

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