Not even one full season with the team and the Lakers are already making exceptions for Bronny James. At least that’s what the reports indicate when they mention the playing conditions of Bronny in the G League. The 20-year-old will reportedly play the games at home with the South Bay Lakers. His debut game will be against Salt Lake City Stars on November 9. But he won’t play the games on the road. The reason behind this, you ask? The fact that Bronny will split his time between LA Lakers and South Bay Lakers. Gilbert Arenas, however, has some interesting theories of his own behind this arrangement.

Appearing on Gil’s Arena podcast, Brandon Jennings first expressed his displeasure regarding the special treatment of the Lakers rookie. “I don’t like the fact that he’s not traveling, like, with the team. I don’t like that,” he said. He further raised the question as to why such VIP kinda treatment for Bronny. “Cause my daddy LeBron James. That’s one.. Two, I’m Bronny James… I’m pretty sure he is the second most famous person on the Lakers themselves…,” Arenas explained.

Further into their discussion, Gilbert Arenas’ podcast crew discussed the condition of hotels that G-League players have to live in while traveling for games on the road. Seemingly, hinting this to be another reason that Bronny does not want to travel with the team.

However, it’s not as if the decision was up to the 20-year-old. “The plan for Bronny to move between the Lakers and South Bay has always been the plan since day one. (General Manager) Rob (Pelinka) and I have talked about that. LeBron’s talked about that,” Reddick said ahead of Lakers’ last matchup against the Suns. And it’s because of this arrangement that Bron’s son will make it to the Lakers’ roster for Friday’s game against the 76ers.

Jennings, however, does not like this setup. And although Gil tried convincing him by saying, “Nobody cares (about the G-League championship), bro.” But the former Bucks star was not even close to being convinced. “They (G-League players) care. If I’m hooping, I care,” he said on the podcast. At one point, both Jennings and Rashad McCants seemed to oppose the idea of Bronny not playing on the road with his G-League team.

Arenas, however, had a point in Bronny’s defense. That is how just his presence makes a difference for the South Bay Lakers. “I think y’all got this f*cked up. First of all, I’m (Bronny) coming to this arena… It’s being filled up because of me… So y’all shouldn’t have no animosity towards me because this is filled up because of me… Do your thing, brothers. Do your thing… It was 2,000 people… Before I got here. We got 20,000 in here. Show out. Y’all should be happy I’m here.”

And the 3x All-Star is not completely wrong about LeBron’s son making a financial difference for the team already.

Gilbert Arenas praised Bronny for the financial impact after he entered the Lakers

Ever since Bronny joined the Lakers, fans and analysts have had a lot to say. Some questioned his spot on the team, speculating if LeBron’s influence played a role. But the former Warriors star stepped in to offer a different perspective on the young James’s place on the roster. And it’s not all about his on-court moves.

The 3x All-Star shared that the Lakers have already seen a return on their investment in Bronny. “Lakers are happy with the Bronny pick because he’s sold enough jerseys to make up for his contract,” he said. “He’s equal money to the team itself. So, it’s not like they lose money on a kid; they’re going to make money on the kid because [of his jersey sales].” 

Now, here’s something that may surprise you—according to reports, Bronny set a record in jersey sales as soon as he was drafted by the Lakers. Selling over 500,000 jerseys within just days. Let that sink in. That’s more than $50 million generated from jersey sales alone, as reported by The Daily Scrum News.

Thus beating out his own dad’s record-breaking numbers when he was the top pick for the Cavs. It’s clear that Bronny’s impact is going beyond points and assists—he’s become a financial asset to the Lakers in record time. So, a team making exceptions for their asset should not come as a surprise.