Bronny James will enter next week’s NBA Draft as perhaps the most intriguing second-round prospect of all time.
The intrigue has little to do with his basketball ability, but rather that of his father LeBron James. It has long been speculated that whoever lands Bronny will have an advantage in securing the services of James, who has the option to opt out of his contract with the Los Angeles Lakers and become a free agent.
Rich Paul, their agent, tried to squash that idea Wednesday. He he told Jonathan Givony of Draft Express that Bronny and LeBron are not a package deal; Drafting Bronny won’t secure a contract with LeBron, and not doing so won’t prevent one.
He gave the Lakers and the Phoenix Suns as examples.
“Lakers can draft Bronny and LeBron doesn’t re-sign.” Pablo told Givony“LeBron won’t go to Phoenix for a minimum deal either. We can squash that now.”
Paul: Bronny has worked for 2 teams
Paul mentioned the Lakers and Suns because he says those are the only two teams with whom Bronny has trained. The Suns have the 22nd pick in the first round. They don’t have a second-round pick. The Lakers pick 17th and 55th overall.
Bronny doesn’t fit the profile of a first-round pick. Bronny, a 6-2 guard, averaged 4.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 19.3 minutes per game as a freshman at USC. He came off the bench in 19 of the 25 games he played and saw his development slowed after suffering cardiac arrest in the summer before his freshman year.
Yahoo Sports draft analyst Krysten Peek projects the Lakers will select Bronny with the 55th pick in their latest mock draft.
Will LeBron and Bronny play together in the NBA?
The idea that Bronny and LeBron are a package deal didn’t come out of nowhere. LeBron has long expressed his desire to play in the NBA with Bronny and at one point stated matter-of-factly that he would do it.
“My last year I will play with my son,” James told The Athletic in 2022. “Wherever Bronny is, there I will be. I would do whatever it took to play with my son for a year. “At that point it’s not about money.”
LeBron has since abandoned that stance, saying in May that “the young man will decide what he wants to do and how he wants his career to go.”
Bronny had this to say about the idea of playing with his dad later in May:
I asked Bronny James if his dream was to play with his father, LeBron James. He replied: “No, never. My dream has always been to make my name known, make a name for myself and reach the NBA, which is the ultimate goal for all of us here. I never thought about just playing with my… pic.twitter.com/jt6yZn0VkX
– Michael Scotto (@MikeAScotto) May 14, 2024
“Yeah, I don’t think about it much,” James said.
How this all plays out remains to be seen, as Bronny will be selected next week as the first chip to drop. Until he is drafted and James signs with whoever he signs, history will continue to dominate the NBA offseason.
