does bronny james deserve to get drafted?
Bronny James recently received medical clearance from the NBA’s Fitness to Play Panel to remain in the 2024 NBA Draft, where James will likely be selected. There’s been lots of speculation since James declared for the draft this offseason whether he actually deserved to do so. The real interest in his draft stock is his father’s, LeBron James, speaking out that he wants to play with his son Bronny in the NBA before his career is over. With only a few seasons left, time is running out. So, the team that drafts him also has a great shot at landing LeBron as well. LeBron has a player option to either accept or decline with the Los Angeles Lakers by June 29th. If he declines, he becomes a free agent, and will probably go wherever Bronny ends up. But if Bronny James wasn’t the son of arguably the greatest basketball player of all time, would he be sniffing anywhere close to draft boards? Probably not.
Bronny committed to play college basketball at USC, where he played one season in 2023-24 before declaring for the NBA Draft while also entering the transfer portal. After receiving medical clearance to remain in the draft, he announced he would keep his name in.
His freshman campaign started late and was the reason he needed medical clearance at all. In the fall before the start of the college basketball season, Bronny went under cardiac arrest unexpectedly and had to miss a good amount of time. From here, there were questions whether he’d ever play basketball again, so seeing him back on the court was a plus on its own.
Once he got on the court though, you could say his play was…mediocre.
He debuted on December 10th in an overtime loss to Long Beach State, putting up four points, two assists, and two steals on 1-3 shooting from the field. Throughout the rest of his freshman season, James averaged 19.4 minutes a game. In those minutes, he put up 4.8 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 2.1 assists on 36.6% shooting from the field and 26.7% shooting from three-point range. Are those really draftable numbers?
I think it’s safe to say if James didn’t have the family he does, he’d be nowhere near even potentially getting drafted. But, he put his name in and even got an invite to the NBA Combine, where he’s actually been boosting his stock quite a bit so far.
James’ measurements came in at 6’ 1.5” without shoes, a 6’ 7.25” wingspan, and an 8’ 2.5” standing reach, all respectable numbers. But, he displayed his shooting ability and athleticism well on day one of the combine.
He made 19/25 shots in the 3-point star shooting drill, which was good for second place. He also tallied a max vertical jump of 40.5 inches, good for a tie for sixth place. Although this might be the worst NBA Draft class of all time, Bronny has certainly upped his stock so far through the combine.
Even with his skills maybe not being at that of most potential draft picks, it’s impossible to ignore the other benefits Bronny would give teams off the court. His name would bring a huge inflation most likely to the sales, merchandising, and all-around attention whatever team drafts him has. This would be particularly interesting to watch if he ends up in a small market city, especially if LeBron follows him there. There’s even a lot of intrigue on how Bronny would affect the G League affiliate of his future team, where he will most likely begin his career.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski touched on it during his appearance on NBA Today this afternoon: “He will pack G League arenas, merchandising. All of those make him an attractive player…So, I certainly think his opportunity to play in the NBA is there.”
In ESPN’s Jonathan Givony’s and Bleacher Report’s Jonathan Wasserman’s most recent mock drafts, they both have Bronny going undrafted. But, with his recent stock rise in the combine mixed with the other positive affects he’ll bring to his team, it seems likely he’ll be taken somewhere.
