Father-son NBA duo: Lakers draft Bronny James to pair him with LeBron

Bronny, the 19-year-old son of the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, is the first player to ever be drafted into the league while his father is an active player. And the two are now set to be teammates should LeBron remain with the Lakers next season. LeBron, 39, has the ability to hit free agency if he declines his $54.1 million player option for 2024-25.

Bronny enters the league following a tumultuous freshman year with the Trojans. Months before his college career was set to begin, Bronny suffered a cardiac arrest during a July 2023 practice at USC’s Galen Center. He was hospitalized and later diagnosed with a congenital heart defect, the likely cause of his cardiac arrest.

After undergoing a procedure to treat his congenital heart defect, Bronny made his debut in early December. But he struggled to find any sort of offensive rhythm throughout the rest of the season.

The 6-foot-2, 210-pound guard averaged 4.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 19.4 minutes per game over 25 contests. He shot just 36.6% from the floor, 26.7% from 3-point range (60 total attempts) and 67.6% from the free throw line (34 total attempts).

Bronny, however, has drawn rave reviews for his mindset and ability on the defensive end of the floor. So while his offensive game still needs work, he does boast enticing two-way potential at the guard spot.

LeBron had stated a desire to play alongside Bronny in the past. But after the Los Angeles Lakers were eliminated from the 2024 playoffs, LeBron said he hadn’t “given much thought lately” to the idea.

Agent Rich Paul, who represents both Bronny and LeBron, told ESPN in the leadup to the draft that “LeBron is off this idea of having to play with Bronny. If he does, he does. But if he doesn’t, he doesn’t.”

The Lakers and Phoenix Suns were the only two teams Bronny was known to have worked out for. That led many to project him to be picked by the Lakers at No. 55 or the Suns at No. 56.

As the second round was ongoing, ESPN analyst and former Golden State Warriors general manager Bob Myers reported that Paul had been calling teams and telling them not to take Bronny or else he’s “going to [play in] Australia.”

Bronny was one of two picks made by Los Angeles in the draft. The Lakers selected Tennessee sharpshooter Dalton Knecht, who surprisingly fell to them at No. 17, in Round 1 on Wednesday.

Bronny James, son of NBA all-time leading scorer LeBeron James, is expected to be a second round pick in the 2024 NBA Draft.