Bryce James, the youngest son of LeBron James, was not made available for interviews during locker room access ahead of Arizona’s Final Four game against Michigan on Saturday.
James is a freshman for the Wildcats who redshirted this season and has not appeared in any games.
News of his restricted media availability comes from Yahoo Sports reporter Dan Wolken, who said an “enforcer” was present in Arizona’s locker room on Thursday to inform the media that James would not participate in any interviews.
Wolken later clarified that the “enforcer” was not there on behalf of the University of Arizona, but rather on behalf of LeBron James and his representation at Klutch Sports Group.
It’s certainly understandable that LeBron James would want to shield his son from the media, particularly considering he hasn’t appeared in a single game for the Wildcats this season. While there are certainly plenty of reasons for reporters to speak with players who do not see much of the court, it’s reasonable for LeBron’s camp to assume that if Bryce were made available for interviews, many of the questions would likely not be related to Arizona’s season.
Whether that’s the right approach for LeBron James and his son, Bryce, is another question.
It’s fair to say this situation would be much different if Bryce James had taken the floor at all this season. But considering he’s actively redshirting, there’s really no harm in LeBron James and Klutch restricting his access. If reporters really wanted the perspective of an Arizona bench player, there were plenty of other options to choose from.
Assuming Bryce stays at Arizona next season, there will be plenty of opportunities to ask him questions then.
About Drew Lerner
Drew Lerner is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and an aspiring cable subscriber. He previously covered sports media for Sports Media Watch. Future beat writer for the Oasis reunion tour.