Teams considering Bronny James as 1st-round pick due to LeBron James

Previously, Bronny James was seen as a late second round pick in the NBA draft and not taken as a serious prospect. This was on the strength of an underwhelming lone season at USC and a medical issue prior to his freshman year. James showed a mixed performance in the combine and was then seen as a “more serious draft prospect afterward,” the Times report added.

James played 25 games with six starts, averaging just 4.8 points on 36.6% shooting with 2.8 rebounds in 19.6 minutes on the floor in his lone campaign with USC.

During the combine, James measured at just 6 feet 1 1/2 inches. This put him at a disadvantage as he measured at the same height as Tyrese Maxey or Jalen Brunson, but lacked the offensive firepower the latter two showed in college. But James displayed his athleticism with a 40.5-inch vertical leap, tied for the sixth best in the combine.

“If he was 6 foot 5, we’d be talking about him in the first round,” a scout said in the Times report.

Scouts also noticed James’ nose for defense and his aggressiveness, with his athleticism and physicality potentially spelling as a difference maker in point-of-attack defense.

In the first scrimmage of the combine, Bronny James appeared like he did not show a lot of effort. A scout familiar with Bronny’s play described his game as “too timid” prior to the combine, and it showed.

But a final five-on-five scrimmage displayed what James could do in an NBA setting, showing his tenacity on the defensive end and being decisive on that end of the floor.

Bronny clear on NBA dream as goal, not to be LeBron James’ teammate

Ahead of the draft, Bronny James is not thinking too much into becoming his father’s teammate but instead has his eyes set on fulfilling his NBA dream first.

“I would be happy about getting to the league instead of me thinking about playing with my dad. That’s not my mindset right now at all. I’m just trying to put in the work and see where it takes me from there,” Bronny said during the combine.

“I always try to come out and play with the most effort. I try to play the right way, I play hard. And, I will always play hard, and I feel like that shows up on the defensive end. Yeah, I just try to focus on that and that’s what will give me minutes in the long run.”

Klutch Sports plans to steer Bronny to a club that would allow the younger James to control his own career, according to LeBron James’ agent Rich Paul.