As the NBA Draft looms on June 27, one of the more intriguing prospects is Bronny James, the son of Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James who played his freshman year with the USC Trojans. While the statistics do not pop out, the 3-and-D skillset is there for Bronny and if he continues to develop his jump shot, he could be a quality NBA player.
However, one of the caveats that has been thrown out there is that whoever drafts Bronny will also be able to land LeBron in free agency.
LeBron has been very outspoken over the years about wanting to play with his son and there are not many years left in the four-time champion’s career to make that happen.
However, on the contrary, with the draft approaching, Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul appears to be putting it out there that whoever drafts Bronny will like not land LeBron, via ESPN’s Brian Windhorst on Get Up:
“Over the last few months, Rich Paul, who is the agent for LeBron and Bronny James, has made an effort to part the concept that drafting Bronny James means you’re getting LeBron. I do believe LeBron is gonna opt out of his contract next month and I do believe he’s got several reasons why he wants to do that and leaving the optionality for playing with Bronny is on the list, but I don’t think it’s at the top. I do think he’s gonna be back with the Lakers and I also will say this, I think if the Lakers have an opportunity to draft Bronny James, they will do so. Whether that’s with the 55th pick or if they make another deal around the draft where they pick up another pick. I think they will try. I do not think it’s going to be their top priority and I don’t think the league right now is looking at this as draft Bronny James and you can get LeBron. I do think the league wants to hear from Bronny this week at the draft combine because nobody has heard from Bronny. LeBron has been his voice throughout his career and the scouts believe that Bronny played out of position this year and they think he actually might be better than what he’s shown. So we’re gonna learn a lot more about Bronny in the next few days, the next week or two, and then we’re gonna have a better chance to assess exactly what might happen.”
Assuming that teams move forward with that notion, it will be intriguing to see where Bronny ends up being taken on draft night. An early indication is that the 19-year-old will be a project and could be selected in the second round.
The Lakers hold the 55th pick in the second round, so it’s possible they take Bronny there and he does get to play with LeBron after all.
Bronny James medically cleared & expected to remain in 2024 NBA Draft
After suffering a cardiac arrest last summer, Bronny’s basketball career was put in jeopardy. But thankfully, he was able to recover and now after playing a season with USC, he is medically cleared to play in the NBA and is expected to keep his name in the upcoming draft class.
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