With the LA Lakers unveiling their regular season schedule, one of the burning questions among fans was how Bronny James would cope with being with his father, LeBron James, on the court, as the scenario of a father and son potentially playing together is unprecedented in the NBA.
LeBron quickly cleared up any confusion by stating that Bronny cannot call him “dad” in the workplace. This was LeBron’s way of setting a professional tone, but it left room for what Bronny should actually call him.
“He got to call me ‘2-3’, or ‘Bron’, or ‘G.O.A.T,’ if he want to,” LeBron said.
McCants slams LeBron
Yet, not everyone is on board with the idea of Bronny calling his father “GOAT.” Former NBA player Rashad McCants voiced his disapproval, describing it as “nasty work” and arguing that no teammate, even if it’s your son, should be calling you the “GOAT” during a game.
While his comments sparked laughter among others, McCants made it clear that he believes such titles should remain separate from the team dynamic.
“That’s nasty work! That’s the nastiest of work he could ever have,” he said.
“Nobody can call. Nobody playing basketball on your team should be referencing that.”
Arenas’ take
Meanwhile, Gilbert Arenas, a former NBA player and father, sympathized with LeBron‘s position, recognizing the difficulty of handling this dual role.
“You got to be really mindful. It’s going to be different when you coaching your kid,” Arenas said.
“It’s going to be different because you want to try not to have that favoritism. So you kind of talk to them a little bit harsher than you would talk to your teammates, just so your teammates respect the workplace. So I can understand why he said ‘No you’re going to call me like everybody else call me.'”
