Bronny James ridiculed by Jason Whitlock's co-host amid preseason woes: "It’s a historic performance, it’s a quadruple zero"

On their show "Fearless" on Friday, Jason Whitlock and his co-host Steve Kim listened to a clip of Charles Barkley saying Bronny James should be treated with “kid gloves.” According to the Hall of Famer, the rookie isn’t a finished product yet so the critics shouldn't be too harsh on the LA Lakers’ 2024 second-round pick.

James played five preseason games and averaged 1.6 points, 1.0 rebounds, 0.2 assists, 0.8 blocks and 1.0 turnovers per game.

Kim didn’t hold back when Whitlock asked if he was on the same page as Barkley.

“It’s a great story. Lot of YouTube channels are getting content out of it. … Bronny had 0-for-4 shooting, no points, no rebounds, no assists. It’s a historic performance, Jason [Whitlock]. It’s a quadruple zero."

The stat line Steve Kim referred to was Bronny James’ game against the Milwaukee Bucks on Oct. 10. He played six minutes and finished with all zeroes in the box score. James missed all four of his attempts, including two from behind the arc.

The game against the Bucks might not have been James’ worst in the preseason. In the Lakers’ matchup versus the Phoenix Suns, the rookie had two rebounds and four turnovers in 13 minutes. He was so bad that even some of the crowd at Acrisure Arena in Palm Springs California booed him.

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Jason Whitlock's co-host claims the criticism against Bronny James is not petty

Many, including former and current players, have said that Bronny James doesn’t deserve to be in the NBA yet. They believe the rookie is playing in the pros with a regular contract because of his legendary father.

For Steve Kim, the criticism the rookie has been getting is deserved. The “Fearless” co-host had this to say about why the negative feedback has not been petty:

(1:03:38 mark)

“He’s not any good! If Bronny was a serviceable rookie-level player, my belief is, give him the kid gloves treatment that LeBron James has been given by certain sections of the media. They would be trumpeting this if he was a solid player in the NBA that deserves a roster spot and earned rotational minutes.”

Kim added that even the Lakers are admitting as much that he isn’t good as they have planned to send Bronny James to the G League. The analyst continued that he is a big fan of Charles Barkley but disagreed with Barkley's call to use kid gloves on LeBron James' son.