Udonis Haslem on Bronny James: 'There is no other kid that could possibly be more prepared for this particular situation'
Udonis Haslem on Bronny James: “There is no other kid that could possibly be more prepared for this particular situation or who can handle this particular situation. As a father, as a businessman, I’ve never seen LeBron James and his team and his family and his people throw stuff at the wall just to see if it sticks. They calculate. They don’t do that. They are calculated. They are sharp. They are smart. There is nobody more prepared than Bronny James. I’m wishing them the best.”
Source: YouTube
Source: YouTube
More on this storyline
One of the only notable moves of the offseason for the Heat this year was drafting big man Kel’el Ware out of Indiana in the first round of the draft, and recently, Ware shared a story where he wasn’t afraid to ask Riley about his portrayal on the recent HBO series “Winning Time,” which discussed his tenure with the Los Angeles Lakers. “I can’t remember word for word but yeah, he didn’t like it, nah, he didn’t like it,” said Ware, via The OG’s Podcast with Udonis Haslem and Mike Miller. -via Clutch Points / July 24, 2024
Sports Summer league was already almost over and Pelle Larsson was still searching for his rhythm on the court. But apparently all the Miami Heat’s second-round pick needed was a message from retired Heat icon Udonis Haslem. When Haslem addressed the Heat’s summer league team at its Las Vegas hotel on July 16, Larsson said “it really hit home with me.” “He was just saying, ‘Be the guy that they drafted you to be,’” Larsson recalled. “I’m not going to come in and be a star player for the team. So I might have two minutes. In those two minutes I’m on the court, I got to play my [butt] off and defend and rebound. That might be all I get to do, even if I don’t get a shot. I’m just locking into that mentality and just being a dog defensively and using my body to my limits because that’s probably what I’m going to get to do when I get to the real team.” -via Miami Herald / July 24, 2024
Prior to Haslem’s speech to the Heat’s summer squad, Larsson was underwhelming with 7.5 points, four rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.8 steals per game while shooting 35.5 percent from the field and 2 of 10 (20 percent) from three-point range in his first four appearances during summer league. After Haslem’s words, Larsson played like one of the Heat summer league team’s best players. He averaged 15.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.3 steals per game while shooting 51.2 percent from the field and 6 of 13 (46.2 percent) on threes during his final four appearances, including his game-winning push shot in overtime of Monday’s Las Vegas Summer League championship contest. -via Miami Herald / July 24, 2024
James was asked a plethora of questions in an interview for fans to get to know him, via the Lakers X (formerly Twitter) account. One of the most notable answers James gave was on how he felt when the Lakers drafted him: “[When I] heard my name called, it was a lot of emotions,” James said. Furthermore, James provided insight into why he chose his No. 9 jersey. “Well, there wasn’t many numbers available for me to pick. Nine was one of the ones that you know, resonated with me especially because I have three of them tattooed on me. Juice World’s 999, meaning it’s turning everything negative and flipping it upside down,” James added. -via Clutch Points / July 30, 2024
But the amazing family achievement for the Jameses hasn’t gone down universally well within the Lakers so far, sources told The U.S. Sun. Inevitably, the 6-foot-2 guard’s Summer League debut in early July generated a tremendous amount of buzz — so much so it might have gotten out of control. The attention he attracted was “very frustrating” for the players to see, and his alleged star treatment caused friction among the team, which went 0-5 to start the tournament, per a Lakers insider. “That kind of tension didn’t help the group of players to build chemistry,” said the source, who noted they have “nothing against” Bronny. “And you could feel that there was no unity [between] this group of guys as Bronny was the main guy and the others didn’t feel that it was right, that he deserved that.” -via The US Sun / July 26, 2024
“I think there’s gonna be negativity regardless of who you are. There’s always going to be trolls on the internet trying to take you down no matter what,” incoming rookie Cody Williams said in a recent interview with Fox News Digital. “(Jayson) Tatum just won a championship and people are still saying he’s the most overrated player. People are still gonna try to do whatever to tear him down. “I think it’s just an incredible moment – a son and a dad are both talented enough to play in the best league in the world. It’s not like you get there because you suck,” he continued. “Both of them are good, they both deserve to be there. Special moment they’re sharing.” -via FOXnews.com / July 26, 2024