Bronny James continues to be linked to the Los Angeles Lakers, and for good reason—his father is currently a member of the team.
Assuming James doesn’t opt out of his contract this summer, the chance for father and son to play together would be a cool story. One scout offered his following assessment on the younger James to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype as part of his latest aggregate mock draft, comparing him to a longtime NBA role player while projecting him to the Lakers:
“I think Bronny will go in the draft because of who he is, and some team will really think LeBron will come if they draft him. If the Lakers keep their pick, they won’t pass on him. He’s a decent player. He’s better than some guys who may get picked ahead of him. He’s solid, not spectacular. He knows how to play. He can handle the ball well enough. If you leave him alone, he’ll drill a three. He reminds me of Austin Rivers as a player, and he’s stayed in the league for over a decade.”
Rivers didn’t catch on with a team this past season but played 10 seasons in the NBA, averaging 8.5 points and 2.1 assists per game, largely as a rotational player.
There’s no doubt that Bronny has some serious holes in his game. That three-point shot isn’t consistent yet, and he isn’t aggressive as a scorer. But he’s a solid defender and secondary playmaker, and in the right role could potentially carve out a career as a player off the bench.
If he can become a true point guard at the NBA level, his value will only go up. The Lakers may draft him, in part, to entice his father to stick around, but Bronny appears to have legit NBA upside as a role player.