Bronny James once again became the talk of the town after reports of him receiving special treatment from the Los Angeles Lakers made rounds. Anonymous players reportedly said the team was marred by tensions and lack of chemistry during Summer League because of the attention the rookie received.
However, Paul Pierce came to the youngster's defense again, calling out the said players for not knowing why the Lakers had to prioritize James' development.
"First of all, Bronny got drafted," Pierce told the disgruntled players . "The rest of y'all, fall in line. ... They developing the draft picks. Y'all just here for — what do they call it — seat fillers when you go the awards. They don't really got a ticket on the roster. The seat is open; you gotta fill it. These are seat fillers talking.
"He's drafted. Of course, they gon' cater more to him, do more for him. ... And next time you do that, put your name on it."
Pierce's impassioned rant
The Boston Celtics legend seems to be a fan of Bronny's path to the NBA despite others attributing it to nepotism. He said earlier this month that he isn't worried about the 19-year-old guard's struggles because the offseason is supposed to be a time for prospects to develop their games.
Pierce may have overstepped a bit, though, in his latest tirade. He called the players out for hiding their identities while allegedly spilling what's going on behind the scenes in Los Angeles, saying that those guys would be in Europe or trying out for the G League soon.
Of course, "The Truth" offered a valid point. The organization, indeed, has the prerogative to focus on James' development after using a draft pick on him. It also employed the same strategy on their first-round selection, Dalton Knecht, who played the most minutes for the Lakers and scored the most among all prospects in the Summer League.
Still, Pierce probably should have understood where the supposed whistleblowers were coming from. They likely weren't looking to criticize Bronny for the sake of it, as the report even said they had "nothing against" the former four-star recruit. Those prospects are also trying to achieve their dreams of making it to the NBA.
Bronny's future
With Summer League done and training camp about to open soon, many eyes will be on James. The past weeks have shown that he still has a lot of room to improve on. He struggled to score and make plays for his teammates, and his defense, which is supposed to be his calling card, looked inconsistent.
It is looking more likely that Bronny will spend more time in the G League than on the Lakers' regular roster. The good news is that he is willing to get reps with the South Bay Lakers. In fact, that might be more advantageous for him because he will likely get significantly more minutes there.
Related: "You can't set a gold standard to bronze standards" - Austin Reaves blasts Bronny James critics
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