Dan Patrick couldn’t keep away from replaying Stephen A. Smith’s rant directed at LeBron James and Bronny James rant “First Take” throughout his present Friday.
He imitated the tone of Smith’s voice.
He decried the somber tone the ESPN host used when describing Bronny’s position with the Lakers, which solely worsened Thursday with a 1-for-6 efficiency throughout 12 minutes throughout their win in opposition to the Wizards.
“You’re not sending him to Afghanistan — good god,” Patrick mentioned on the “Dan Patrick Show” throughout a section. “Oh my god, I wasn’t that critical at my mother’s funeral. ‘Stop this. Stop this. Pleading with you.’
“Wow, if you didn’t know the context, but I just said, listen to his voice, you’d be like, ‘Oh my God, somebody passed away. What happened?’”
Smith’s rant occurred Wednesday, the day after Bronny went 0-for-5 from the sphere and turned the ball over 3 times throughout a career-high 15:26 of enjoying time.
The Lakers chosen him within the second spherical within the 2024 NBA Draft, and Bronny and his father made historical past through the opening sport of the season after they grew to become the primary father-son duo to look in the identical sport.
However throughout restricted enjoying time, Bronny has averaged lower than a degree, lower than a rebound and fewer than an help per sport, shuttling forwards and backwards between Los Angeles’ most important staff — the place he performs sparingly — and their G League roster, the place he can acquire extra minutes to spark growth.
That each one boiled over for Smith on Wednesday, and he mentioned he was “pleading with LeBron James as a father: stop this. Stop this.”
“We all know that Bronny James is in the NBA because of his dad,” Smith continued. “The primary sport of the season, opening night time, the Griffeys in attendance, father-son duo enjoying in an NBA sport for the primary time, a completely, positively fantastic story. After which actuality units in. We love what we’re seeing from him within the G League as a result of that’s the place you belong as you hone your abilities and also you get higher and also you legitimately earn — which I imagine he has the potential to do, I’m rooting for Bronny James.
“It would be cruel to root against him. He’s a wonderful kid, I wish him nothing but the best. But he’s LeBron James’ son and everybody knows what attention that brings.”
Patrick, a former ESPN host, complimented Smith for being a “great actor” and at all times including “theatre,” and he joked that the rant appeared like Liam Neeson in “Taken.”
“He got into a basketball game,” Patrick mentioned. “He’s not in Iraq.”
The Lakers, which sit fifth within the Western Convention with a 27-19 report, face the Knicks on the Backyard on Saturday with an opportunity to safe an eighth win throughout their final 10 video games.
