Bronny James staying in 2024 NBA Draft, agent says

Bronny James, the son of NBA superstar LeBron James, will forgo the remainder of his college eligibility to enter the 2024 NBA Draft, his agent Rich Paul told ESPN ahead of the NCAA draft deadline on Wednesday. Athletic As previously reported, the decision was expected.

“Bronny’s [draft] “The range is wide,” Paul told ESPN. “He’s a really good prospect with a lot of room to grow. He just needs one team. It doesn’t matter where that team is. It doesn’t matter if it’s No. 1 or No. 58. [but] I care about planning and development.

“It’s the team’s strategy, the opportunity and the financial commitment. So I don’t do two-way deals. Every team understands that.”

The Phoenix Suns, who have the 22nd pick, are expected to work out with James before the draft, and James is one of the candidates they plan to select. Athletic As previously reported, James has received invitations to more than 10 workouts but is expected to only visit a few teams, including the Suns and Los Angeles Lakers.

James, who suffered cardiac arrest last July before returning to the court during his freshman season at USC, has been fully cleared to play by the NBA’s Fitness-to-Play panel and has participated in all pre-draft activities, starting with the NBA Draft Combine earlier this month.

James wasn’t considered a top prospect, but AthleticMock draft after the lottery selection. His last name and the story of how he returned to the court after a serious health scare make him one of the most intriguing players in this year’s draft class.

Additionally, it will be interesting to see if James and his father could ever become teammates, with LeBron making it clear he wants to end his career playing alongside his son.

James’ brother collapsed from cardiac arrest during a USC practice in July. A family spokesman said the incident was caused by a congenital heart condition. Doctors cleared him to return to practice four months later and he made his collegiate debut on December 10 against Long Beach State. He appeared in USC’s final 25 games, starting six, averaging 4.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 19.3 minutes per game.

The questions surrounding his future intensified in March when USC coach Andy Enfield resigned for SMU’s head coaching vacancy.

James, 19, declared for the NBA draft on April 5. He also entered the transfer portal to remain flexible while training with an NBA team.

Following the coaching change at USC, LeBron said he “had to make a difficult decision” regarding Bronny’s future.

“At the end of the day, Bronny’s his own man,” LeBron said in April.

James’ brother’s decision comes ahead of a bigger one for his father, who has until June 29 to decide whether to pick up his $51.4 million player option for the 2024-25 season. A team source said last month that the Lakers were open to the possibility of drafting LeBron and helping his son achieve his dream of playing alongside him.

LeBron did not respond to a question about whether he played his final game as a Laker after Los Angeles was eliminated in five games by the Denver Nuggets in the first round of the NBA playoffs.

The NBA Draft will be held June 26-27.

Bronny James scouting report

Bronny is projected to be a 3&D guard who plays hard, makes good offensive decisions, does the little things, is a good passer, leads fast breaks off defensive rebounds, fills transition lanes, and attacks the rim when he has the opportunity. He is a great defensive player who competes at the point of attack and has the length and foot speed to match up with most guards.

James’ offensive prowess is still a work in progress. He’s struggled to get touches in the half-court paint this year, and his pull-up shot isn’t his forte yet. He shot just 27 percent from 3-point range last season, but he’s looked more confident taking shots at USC and has more shooting talent than his percentage would suggest. Sam Veceny, NBA Draft writer

Do Bronny’s measurements at the combine matter?

We finally see exactly how tall James is: 6’1.5″ without shoes, with an arm span of 6’7.5″, and a standing reach of 8’2.5″. This is much smaller than his 6’4″ height when he played at USC, but it’s important to remember that colleges list players’ heights with shoes on. The Trojans did add an inch to Bronny’s height, but they didn’t grossly exaggerate it. Besides, NBA teams were operating under the assumption that James was around 6’2″.

James’ standing reach is closer to that of a point guard than a combo guard or shooting guard. Past players who recorded a standing reach of 8-foot-2-1/2 inches at the combine include Bruce Brown, Collin Sexton, Terry Rozier and Avery Bradley. James is a bit stronger and stockier than most of those players. – Bethenny Jul 23 ’13 at 14:43

How much would showing him shooting drills help him?

James’ success in shooting drills should remind evaluators that James has the potential to make shots regardless of his success rate. That being said, as I wrote a month ago, “He had much more shooting potential in high school than he did in college. There’s nothing inherently wrong with his movement. Maybe not being allowed to play during the offseason threw him off rhythm.”

NBA teams didn’t go into this process believing James couldn’t shoot. In fact, it’s the parts of his offensive game that they’re most confident in the pros. And those shots are just a handful. Hundreds of scouts and executives at last year’s Nike Hoop Summit saw samples of James taking far more shots than he did at the combine. And, of course, the shots he took at game speed last season are still the ones that matter most. That may have changed some minds, but I’m not convinced it changed much. – Bethenny Jul 23 ’13 at 14:43

What about his vertical jump?

It’s good to confirm what people already thought, but again, the evaluators were working under the assumption that James was going to perform very well athletically. This test may not have turned out very well for James, but it’s worth confirming preconceptions. – Bethenny Jul 23 ’13 at 14:43

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(Photo: Jeff Haynes/NBAE via Getty Images)