Why is Bronny James not playing tonight for South Bay Lakers in G League? Latest on LeBron James' son absence

Bronny James has only played two games for the South Bay Lakers in the NBA G League this season. James last suited up for South Bay on Nov. 17 against the Stockton Kings. But why is LeBron James' son not playing tonight for the Lakers' G League affiliate?

According to the team's latest injury report, Bronny has a contusion in his left heel. It's unclear when the rookie suffered the injury, but it's most likely in South Bay's loss to Stockton. He was on the injury report after that game and has not been cleared to return since.

There's currently no timetable for his recovery, so South Bay fans have to wait for his return. He's only scheduled to play home games in the NBA G League, which has been criticized by some people, including former NFL player Ryan Clark, who called him out on The Pivot podcast.

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Why is Bronny James only playing home games in the NBA G League?

According to ESPN's Brian Windhorst, Bronny James won't be playing road games for the South Bay Lakers because they fly commercial. Bronny is one of the most famous players in the league right now, so it's a security concern for him and his team.

"From my understanding, he's only going to play in the South Bay Lakers home games, that he's only going to be a part-time G League player," Windhorst said, according to Front Office Sports. 'He's not getting on United Airlines and going to fly and go see these other teams, play in those road games."

While it's certainly a type of special treatment, it's something the player, his representatives and the LA Lakers agreed to. Bronny James has played a total of two games in the G League and six games in the NBA.

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Charles Barkley not a fan of Lakers' handling of Bronny James

One of the people critical of how the LA Lakers, and to a degree LeBron James, are handling Bronny James was Charles Barkley. Speaking on The Bettor Angle show on Saturday, Barkley explained why Bronny needs to spend more time in the G League.

"The kid is not ready to play in the NBA," Barkley said, according to Sports Illustrated. "He should be in the G-League so he can play basketball. He's not gonna get better sitting on the bench. And also, this thing where he's only gonna play home games, it's stupid. It's not fair to him, it's not fair to the team."

The Hall of Famer added:

"I don't think they are doing Bronny any favors. They have just handled this thing very bad. It's a bad look for the Lakers. I really like everything LeBron has done, but it's a bad look for him in my opinion."

In six NBA games this season, Bronny has a total of four points in 14 minutes of play.