Bronny James took another step toward playing on the same team as his father LeBron when he agreed to a multiyear contract with the Los Angeles Lakers.
The Lakers took him with the No. 55 pick in last week’s NBA draft, which caused some varied reactions from the basketball world. While many felt it was a heartwarming moment for the James family, others cried nepotism.
The elder James has talked about wanting to play on the same team as his son for over a year. At his introductory press conference on Tuesday, the younger James claimed he hasn’t really thought about playing with the league’s all-time leading scorer.
Bronny James was asked if LeBron still being an active player had anything to do with him entering the 2024 draft:
"I never really had a thought of me going to play with my dad" pic.twitter.com/HvxD53VmqT
— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) July 2, 2024
His claim surely elicited snickers from many, including Lakers fans.
It is thought the team drafted the younger James in order to appease his father, who is currently a free agent. There isn’t any empirical evidence the elder James or his camp pressured Los Angeles to draft his son, but from all outward appearances, it seems the elder James has somehow had some influence over the situation.
Perhaps he and his agent Rich Paul let the team know they wanted it to take the younger James as a prerequisite to the elder James agreeing to re-sign with it. Or perhaps the Lakers simply decided to take the younger James on their own free will as their way of taking care of the 39-year-old superstar.