CHICAGO — Sitting front and center in front of a packed press corps in a spacious hotel ballroom, Bronny James answered questions from members of the media for the first time in months Tuesday. About the USC era. About preparing to someday join his father's NBA. About him being his own man. and about his time in the Windy City, where he will be attending the 2024 NBA Draft Combine this week.
James jumped on a number of topics and answered questions from reporters, stumbling (both physically and literally) to get the right words. In doing so, he eloquently steps out of the shadow of being the son of Lakers superstar and NBA icon LeBron James and makes it clear that he is his own man with his own mission. So, I stepped into the bright spotlight of Bronny James.
“I’d be happy to be in the league instead of thinking about playing with my dad,” Bronny said. “But that's not my mindset at all. I'm just trying to put in the work and see where it goes.”
This week, James received a lot of attention for his performance at the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago. On Monday, he posted a standing vertical record of 40.5 inches. He took second place among the participants in the 3-point star shooting training. But it wasn't what he did Tuesday that went down as his most impressive feat, but rather what he said.
“My dream was always to get my name out there, make a name for myself, and of course, you know, the ultimate goal of everyone here, to make it to the NBA,” he said. Ta. “And I never thought about just playing with my dad, but of course he brought it up a few times.”
Certainly he is. King himself has said many times over the years that one of his dreams is to play in the NBA with his son. That dream is coming closer to reality, Just over a month left.
In what capacity he joins his father at the top level is another matter. James is not expected to be selected in the top 60 of this year's draft, so he could go undrafted. But the appeal of selecting him, and the benefits it could bring, keep his name at the top of draft discussions when considering the implications. If the Lakers selected him, for example, he would be his father's teammate. You can bet on something like that, and yes, the Lakers are the favorites.
The question of whether that will be as a draft pick or as a free agent pickup appears to be being answered in real time. James had some ups and downs this week in Chicago and showed some flare. At this point in this class, no one expects him to be a draft pick. But this is not a vacuum. This is Bronny James and LeBron James. He is the world's most famous draft prospect and the world's most famous basketball player. Anything can happen. Just know that it's happening to draft prospect Bronny James, not LeBron James' son Bronny James. He wants that to be clear.
“I just want people to know that my name is Bronny James and not just be LeBron James' son,” he said. Ta.
