“Influencer playing basketball,” NBA veteran cites Bronny James and Patrick Mahomes comparison among heated criticism

NBA veteran Gilbert Arenas compared Bronny James and Patrick Mahomes on the latest episode of his podcast.

“Influencer playing basketball,” NBA veteran cites Bronny James and Patrick Mahomes comparison among heated criticism

Gilbert Arenas draws Bronny James, Patrick Mahomes Comparison

The discourse surrounding Bronny James has been loud around the NBA and the Los Angeles Lakers. Everybody seems to have an opinion about the 20-year-old rookie even before his first regular season NBA minutes have been logged.

With more people adding to the discourse every day, former Washington Wizards All-Star guard Gilbert Arenas drew a unique comparison between Bronny James and reigning Super Bowl MVP Patrick Mahomes. Arenas spoke about the social media ‘influence’ of the 20-year-old.

Despite having played D1 basketball at USC before being drafted by the Lakers, Gill termed Bronny James as an ‘influencer who plays basketball’ rather than a basketball player. He even drew parallels between the social media following of James Jr. and NFL superstar Patrick Mahomes.

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He’s an influencer that’s playing basketball. You’re talking about a kid who, he has more followers on social media than Patrick Mahomes. He literally has more than a three-time NFL Champion.

Gilbert Arenas said on his Gil’s Arena Podcast

With an Instagram following of 8.1 million compared to just 6.8 Million for the reigning Super Bowl Champion, Bronny James certainly has a huge online fanbase. Arenas leveled the comparison between the two Star athletes following criticism of the Lakers’ decision to draft the younger James.

Many claimed that the Lakers drafted Bronny to appease their franchise player, LeBron James. However, Gil has a different opinion based on Bronny’s ‘business value.’

“He is a business, no matter what you say, you’re going to make money off of him. So to say the Lakers is not serious because they picked him at 55? Let me know who was a better choice at 55 that was going to help the franchise.

Gilbert Arenas added
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Bronny James’ preseason woes continue

While many had big expectations for Bronny James’ preseason debut, the latest addition to the LakeShow has been far from flattering. The rookie has averaged just one point on 12.5% shooting from the field in his four preseason games. Scoring in games has been a struggle for Bronny so far, and his on-court numbers paint a woeful picture.

Across his first three games in the preseason, Bronny was tied for the second-worst plus-minus numbers in the league, with a whopping -40 +/-. With the Lakers’ regular season opener slated to kick off in less than a week, fans and analysts will be hoping for Bronny to flip a switch and cement his name in the league.