Matt Barnes believes LeBron James' move to Philadelphia was the best thing for Bronny James' career.
TMZ Sports caught up with the retired NBA player at Ryan Garcia's open workout in Los Angeles this week.
Barnes weighed in on one of the league's most polarizing hoopers.
"A lot of people wanna say his dad got him drafted, and that may be true, may not be true," Matt told us.
"But Bronny has a lot of talent, and I just thought if he would've stayed just one more year, he could've did it on his own."
Of course, that's neither here nor there, as the 21-year-old is a Laker with a guaranteed contract heading into his third season.
MB thinks he's primed for his best year.
"I think it's great now that obviously Bron is gone and Bronny is kinda on his own," Barnes said.
"I think that's something that he was kinda looking forward to, to kinda just say, 'hey, I can do this without my dad.'"
Bronny is averaging 2.7 points per game in 8.1 minutes as a pro.
As for advice for the younger James, Matt was blunt.
"Man, just keep doing your thing. Shut the other s*** out."
"I think his dad has probably been able to teach him that. The only thing that matters is his circle, and his game."
