Bronny James’ lone season at USC didn’t go as planned.
Shortly after participating in the McDonald’s All-American Game, he suffered a cardiac arrest while working out on campus, which prolonged his college debut.
After missing a short amount of time, the son of the NBA’s all-time leading scorer got back on the floor, but he didn’t play to his full potential.
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Bronny James #9 of the Los Angeles Lakers speaks with the media during a press conference at UCLA Health Training Center on July 02, 2024 in El Segundo, California. The Lakers selected Bronny James and Dalton Knecht in the 2024 NBA Draft. (Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
Of course, he had quite an eventful offseason, but he still averaged less than five points per game while starting six of his 25 games played.
Nonetheless, he was still the 55th selection in the NBA Draft, to his father’s Los Angeles Lakers.
James averaged 19.3 minutes per game with the Trojans. It remains to be seen what his role will be with L.A., and if history repeats itself, a 55th pick normally wouldn’t have much of one.
But James is here to rewrite history.
James said that the time missed in the summer kept him from “perfecting [his] game more,” and in turn, it cost him throughout the season.
“I feel like I’ve been given an opportunity to showcase what I can really do because I wasn’t given that much of an opportunity at USC,” James told the media on Tuesday.
Bronny James poses for a photo during the 2024 NBA Combine on May 13, 2024 at Wintrust Arena in Chicago, Illinois. (Kamil Krzaczynski/NBAE via Getty Images)
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Considering he is now teammates with his father, and the Lakers hired LeBron’s podcast co-host in JJ Redick, the broad speculation is that LeBron has been the defacto general manager this offseason (of course, that’s been a rather popular thought throughout his career).
The Lakers’ selection of Bronny made the Jameses the first father-son duo to be active players in the NBA at the same time.
LeBron once said his final year in the NBA would be with his son, so some have assumed in recent years that James would retire after playing with his son for one year. But before the draft, their agent, Rich Paul, said the two were not a package deal.
It seemed odd, though, that Bronny had invites for workouts with at least 10 teams but only accepted two from the Lakers and Phoenix Suns. However, Paul says that was all “by design.”
Bronny James #9 of the Los Angeles Lakers during a press conference at UCLA Health Training Center on July 02, 2024 in El Segundo, California. The Lakers selected Bronny James and Dalton Knecht in the 2024 NBA Draft. (Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
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Scouts weren’t too kind to Bronny, with one saying he was “not an NBA prospect.” In his lone season with the USC Trojans, he averaged less than five points per game.
Once he begins the 2024-25 campaign, LeBron will make history in two ways. Not only will he share the floor with his son, he will also tie Vince Carter for the most NBA seasons played at 22.
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