It’s pretty obvious that Bronny James’ debut preseason campaign isn’t a glittering one. At the same time, it’s also important to say that the hoop nation has an unfair expectation of ‘a 55th draft pick’, who barely gets minutes. Nevertheless, the James family seems unfazed by the millions of naysayers and their comments. Papa LeBron and Savannah’s latest social media activity, showcasing their eldest son’s breakthrough in a $200 million magazine, is standing proof.

Days after LeBron and Bronny James created history by stepping on the hardwood as the first-ever father-son duo, the young gun received a prestigious honor. The leading men’s lifestyle and fitness magazine, Men’s Health, slapped its cover page with a stunning pic of the 20-year-old.

Under the image, the magazine wrote a teaser to the lead-up of the story covering Bronny James and it read, “The NBA rookie on playing with dad surviving a heart scare, and training to win.” Moreover, the Lakers rookie donned a white tank top with red trousers and held a basketball. Above all, he put up a smile, a spitting image of his dad. No surprise!

The proud parents, Savannah and LeBron, shared the post on their respective Instagram stories along with a flurry of emojis, expressing their joy to see their son in a popular magazine. Bronny James’ dad mixed it up with king, salute, stars, and brown heart emoticons. Vannah, on the other hand, went for the classic hearty eye ones.

Especially, coming from a celebrity family, Bronny James isn’t new to popularity. But this particular feat is different. In short, the 20-year-old is building his own brand, outside of his dad’s shadow. Moreover, the rising star has secured major brand deals with Nike and Beats by Dre. So, it’s safe to say, he’s been working on his marketability. However, the question is, will he translate it to the court?

Will Bronny James win over the hoop nations’ hearts?

First of all, it’s important to understand that Bronny James has been subject to unfair criticism. It’s seriously problematic when the earlier 54 picks get a certain leeway by James’ under-par performances. Especially when JJ Redick has yet to fully include him in rotations. Speaking of which, Gilbert Arenas recently came up with an interesting argument, taking a sly dig at Wizards‘ No.2 pick, Alex Sarr.

“That is the problem here that they’re focused on the 55th pick in the NBA draft and everybody else the top five picks get to go through the league like nothing happened,” said Arenas. He further added, “If there’s no Bronny, the kid from the Wizards would be called a bust today.”

Moreover, it wasn’t just him, even Stephen A. Smith hit back at the critics, bargaining some more years for Bronny to prove his worth. The senior sportscaster said, “Stand back, fall back, chill the hell out, and let the man do his thing with his son, and let’s see what and how Bronny develops in the years to come.” 

Nevertheless, it’s quite funny to expect any mercy from the critics. One way or the other, the young gun has to shut them down. And, he could play most of his rookie season in the G-League under Zach Guthrie, considering the Lakers‘ stacked roster.

What do you think is going to happen?