Because LeBron James is currently on the Los Angeles Lakers, it has always been believed that his son, Bronny James, might make his way to the team during this summer’s NBA draft.
And other NBA teams apparently are struggling to even meet with him, as ESPN’s Jonathan Givony reported during Tuesday’s NBA Today (8:20 in video below):
“NBA teams that I talk to say they cannot get Bronny James into their building. Teams that are drafting in the late 20s and 30s. The Phoenix Suns have a second workout scheduled with Bronny later this week, but other than that, we have not seen any NBA team be able to work him out. The sense among teams is that his agent, Rich Paul, does not want him on a two-way contract, and the range he’s going to be picked—the 40-58 range—that’s where two-way contracts are handed out. So it’s looking right now like Bronny is going to slide to No. 55 [to the Lakers].”
Normally, second-round prospects don’t receive this level of attention or scrutiny, but given LeBron’s expressed desire to potentially play on the same team as his son one day—and his potential free agency this summer—it’s easy enough to see why a team might convince itself that drafting Bronny could help entice LeBron to sign with them in free agency.
Reports have pushed back on both that possibility and on LeBron leaving the Lakers at all. But if Bronny isn’t taking many workouts, there will likely be some speculation that he’s doing it to force his way to a specific team in general, potentially the Lakers.
B/R’s Jonathan Wasserman projected the younger James to end up with the Lakers at No. 55 in his latest mock draft, noting that “rival teams sound uncertain about Bronny’s chances of getting drafted,” though added that he “impressed with his shooting at the NBA combine, while James’ defensive quickness popped at USC” and that his “shotmaking, foot speed and IQ do create a viable three-and-D archetype and path to NBA success in the long term.”
So there is potential role-player upside here, though not the sort likely to have him off the board late in the first round or early in the second.
The Lakers’ potential interest exists for obvious reasons, while the Suns need to stock up on cheap, two-way role players to support a top-heavy roster built around the expensive trio of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal. Other teams
This year’s draft isn’t exactly loaded at the top, making Bronny’s draft stock even bigger of a storyline. But it still feels likely his path will intersect with the Lakers.