Over the last couple of years, LeBron James has gotten plenty of criticism regarding the path his son Bronny has taken with his own basketball career. The elder James made it clear that his dream was to play in the NBA alongside his son, and in 2024, the younger James was taken by the Lakers with the No. 55 pick in the draft.
The two members of the James clan played in the same game at the same time in the Lakers' first contest of the 2024-25 season. Since then, the younger James has mostly failed to prove that he's worthy of any real playing time in the NBA, which has led many to attack his father for allegedly funneling him into the league instead of letting him take his time to develop at a lower level.
At NBA All-Star Weekend on Saturday, former NBA guard and five-time champion Ron Harper was interviewed alongside his sons Ron Harper Jr. and Dylan Harper. Dylan Harper is a standout rookie with the San Antonio Spurs, while Ron Harper Jr. plays for the Boston Celtics.
Ron Harper was asked if he ever saw his kids following in his footsteps and playing in the NBA. He replied by throwing some serious shade at the elder James.
“I’m not LeBron James. I’m not going to tell my kids what they have do.”
Dylan Harper, in particular, has helped the Spurs establish the second seed in the Western Conference and the third-best record in the league. The 6-foot-5, 215-pound Rutgers University product is averaging 10.9 points and 3.7 assists in 21.7 minutes a game and is part of a very potent backcourt rotation for San Antonio.
The younger James, meanwhile, has mustered just 2.2 points and 1.2 assists in 7.3 minutes a game and is shooting 40% from the field this season with Los Angeles. On Tuesday, when the Spurs defeated the Lakers 136-108, Dylan Harper had 15 points and six assists, while the younger James showed a bit of spark with 12 points on 5-of-10 shooting and six assists.
The elder James has another son, Bryce, who is currently a freshman at the University of Arizona and could enter this summer's NBA draft if he wishes to.
This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Ron Harper takes a shot at LeBron James regarding Bronny James