Bronny James is still the talk of the 2024 Draft Class. While the draft itself is still a little more than a month away, analysts all around the NBA world have predicted varying positions for the 19-year-old. Several analysts, like Chandler Parsons, claim that teams could take a gamble by drafting the teenager that he’s projected to have a possibility of adding LeBron James to their roster. However, Lou Williams did burst the bubble of the potential father-son duo with an obvious observation.
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On the latest episode of the Run It Back show, the panel – Shams Charania, Chandler Parsons, Lou Williams, and Michelle Beadle–discussed Bronny James’ future. Expected to be a later second-round pick, the reports suggest that the Los Angeles Lakers could select him with their #55 pick. However, Parsons claimed that a team with a pick earlier than the LA side could sneak in and acquire Bronny for a chance to bring in LeBron James as well.
“If I’m Dallas, if I’m another good team and I sneak in at 53 or 54 or I can get a pick before that, why not? The kid clearly has the athleticism, he has the genes, he has the capabilities. If I had a glimmer of hope to get LeBron James on my roster next year,” Parsons believed.
Lou Williams had a great response to his co-panel member. According to the three-time Sixth Man of the Year, the possibility of the father-son link-up is only possible if both are interested. While LBJ has expressed his desire of wanting to share the locker room with his eldest son, Bronny has never revealed the same wish.
“We have to stop this. We have not once heard Bronny James say one time ‘I wanna play with my dad’. He wants to be his own person, he wants to be his own man, he wants to earn his right to be a reputable NBA player,” Williams revealed.
"We have not once heard Bronny James say one time, 'I want to play with my Dad', he wants to be his own person."@TeamLou23 on Bronny James. pic.twitter.com/RsZKsZiLwg
— Run It Back (@RunItBackFDTV) May 23, 2024
The Los Angeles Lakers superstar has been extremely vocal, making it well-known to the public that he would love to share the court with his eldest son. However, Bronny doesn’t have the same goal. According to the prospect, he is on the lookout to make a name for himself.
“Never. My dream has always just been to put my name out, make a name for myself. And of course, get to the NBA. Never thought about just playing with my dad but of course, he’s brought it up a couple times,” Bronny explained.
LeBron James has one year remaining in his existing contract. He might not immediately join the team that his son is representing. But, he could be signed to that team as a free agent during the 2025 offseason. The potential of acquiring King James will be tempting, and teams with picks earlier than the California side could take a chance by drafting Bronny.
Bronny James didn’t impress scouts
Bronny James’ declaration for the 2024 Draft came as a huge surprise considering that he barely made an impact during his lone season at the USC Trojans. However, he expected to see a rise in his draft stocks with hopes to impress scouts in the draft combine. Unfortunately, that didn’t seem to be the case.
The scouts received their biggest shock when Bronny was reported to be almost 3 inches shorter than what he was listed as in college. Further, the 19-year-old was also criticized for his subpar shooting. Bronny knocking down floaters in the draft combine also had scouts question his offensive arsenal.
Ever since the draft process began, the media has been scrutinizing Bronny James. However, LeBron James seems to be proud of the way his son has been dealing with the media. In his chat with JJ Redick, LeBron said:
“I think they said, ‘You know well since your dad is not in the playoffs no more, we are gonna ride your coattails, we can’t get your dad to say anything’.”
Bronny expecting to be picked in the Draft in itself is a huge achievement considering his subpar outing this past college season. Hence, it is evident that the youngster’s stock has been rising consistently. It shouldn’t come as a shock when Bronny further improves his game and is part of the 12-man NBA team roster within the next year.
