Tag: Bronny James Jr.

Bronny James debuts at No. 30 in 247Sports’ 2023 Top 50 rankings

Bronny James is ranked 30th in 247Sports’ initial class of 2023 top 50 rankings, which were released on Wednesday.

Bronny James is one of the most recognizable names in the class of 2023, but he still has plenty of work to do to ascend to the top of 247Sports’ rankings.

247Sports released its initial class of 2023 top 50 rankings on Wednesday, with James coming in at No. 30. He is also the No. 4 combo guard in his class. DaJuan Wagner Jr., son of former NBA player DaJuan Wagner, claimed the top overall spot in the rankings.

“Athletically, James is impressive, and he’s continued to become more athletic over the last year,” 247Sports’ Evan Daniels said in James’ scouting report. “Where he impresses the most is with his feel for the game, vision and passing. While he’s projecting as an off guard/combo for now, the passing ability makes you wonder if he could eventually slide over to full-time point guard with development.

“James is also an impressive shooter with good shot mechanics. He’s comfortable pulling up for one- and two-dribble pull-ups, and has a lot of potential as a long-range shooter. It’s still early in the process, and ultimately his upside will be determined by his physical and skill growth.”

James, the son of Lakers star LeBron James, has garnered plenty of attention early in his basketball career. Not only does the spotlight shine on him because of his father, but he also plays at Sierra Canyon where, in 2019-20, he played alongside Kentucky recruit BJ Boston, Stanford recruit Ziaire Williams, and Zaire Wade, son of former NBA star Dwayne Wade.

James appeared for 34 games in Sierra Canyon as a freshman, averaging 4.1 points in 15 minutes per game. In December, James scored 15 points and earned game MVP honors after hitting a game-winning layup late in the game against his father’s alma mater, St. Vincent-St. Mary high school. ESPN aired 15 of Sierra Canyon’s games during James’ first high school season.

Unlike his father, James might not have the option of bypassing college and going straight to the NBA. Duke is the favorite to secure a commitment from James, as his 247Sports’ Crystal Ball currently reads 100% in favor of the Blue Devils.

Bronny James gamed with NBA players in SLAM’s Call of Duty tourney

Bronny James Jr. showed out on the sticks Saturday night during SLAM’s Call of Duty tourney

At 15 years old Bronny James Jr. is in the prime of his video game days, and he showed he is not to be played with on the sticks Saturday night.

SLAM held a Call of Duty: Modern Warfare tourney, and it live streamed the games on Twitch.  A freshman at Sierra Canyon, Bronny played with and against NBA players in the 6 vs. 6 tourney. Meyers Leonard, Mario Hezonja, Zach LaVine and Donovan Mitchell were on his team.

The NBA players on the opposing team were Ben Simmons, Royce O’Neale, Josh Hart, along with Kentucky commit Terrence Clarke. Bronny and his team lost the series, 4-3, nearly coming back from a 3-0 deficit.

The first game Bronny and his team won was Capture the Flag on the map Speedball. Hezonja was the MVP of that game, but Bronny and Leonard were viable sidekicks. Along with playing well in Capture the Flag, Bronny also had a solid game when the group played Headquarters on Shoot House.

With the country engaging in social distancing to slow the spread of the coronavirus, events like these can be a good way for athletes and their fans to interact with each other.

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Report: LeBron to be at Bronny Jr.’s game against St. Vincent-St. Mary

LeBron James having the opportunity to watch his son Bronny James Jr. on Saturday will be a special family moment.

LeBron James has had an MVP-caliber season in year 17, but for now he will take a break to enjoy a joyous family moment Saturday.

Per ESPN’s Dave McMenamin, James will be in attendance at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio, to watch his son Bronny James Jr. play against his alma mater, St. Vincent-St. Mary High School. A freshman for Sierra Canyon, Bronny has flashed his athleticism with some dunks throughout the year.  Sierra Canyon and St. Vincent-St. Mary will tip off at 8:30 p.m. EST., and the game can be viewed on ESPN3.

The Los Angeles Lakers have an off day Saturday as they come off a win against the Miami Heat. Per McMenamin, James chartered a flight to Columbus so he could watch Bronny play. The Lakers will play the third game of a five-game road trip against the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday.

With the NBA schedule being hectic, here’s what James said about not being able to see his children perform in their athletic events.

“If you ask me what’s been the only sucky thing about this season so far is that my son has played like six games into his freshman year and I haven’t seen one,” James said after the Lakers’ win in Miami on Friday night. “I love what I do. I don’t take this for granted. This is a dream come true. But missing my son, you know Bron Jr., missing [my other son] Bryce’s first game the other day when we left for Orlando, his first game of the season. Missing my daughter at gymnastics and things of that nature, and I understand the business, but it sucks.”

James called being able to watch his son play against his alma mater “a pretty surreal, come-full-circle, unbelievable thing.”

The opportunity James has to watch Bronny is special. LeBron came onto the national scene during high school, and with Bronny gaining more national attention, it has to be cool for LeBron to see his son play in the state where everything began.

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Drake gives shout out to Sierra Canyon, Bronny James on Instagram

Drake’s support for Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James also extends to his son, Bronny James Jr.

After being featured on the front page of the Washington Post and having his highlights posted on every sports website, Bronny James Jr. and his Sierra Canyon Trail Blazers have gotten yet another boost when it comes to the awareness of their squad. As if they needed any extra attention, with their games being carried locally on Fox Sports in Southern California and 15 games being aired on ESPN, one of the world’s biggest stars put them on the map.

Recording artist Drake posted a selfie of him sipping on a drink on Tuesday night as he was wearing a navy blue Sierra Canyon hoodie, no doubt a nod to Bronny James Jr., Zaire Wade and the celebrity squad they have. It also got the attention of Bronny himself.

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Drake is no stranger to being a hype beast when it comes to different sports teams, but he wanted to show he was “scumming” for his nephew, referring to Bronny Jr. Drake, of course, is close friends with James as well as a business partner of his. So the support for his eldest son, who has a following unlike any we’ve ever seen for a high school freshman, shouldn’t be a shock either.

 

Bronny James Jr. and Sierra Canyon to have 15 games streaming on ESPN

The high school squad of LeBron James Jr. and Zaire Wade will be broadcast 15 times on ESPN streaming services.

Move over, Disney+. There’s a new streaming event that promises to sweep the nation. LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers are currently the best basketball team in town and the Western Conference with a 9-2 record through 11 games and the No. 1 ranked defense in the NBA, but the team that may rival their following during the season is not the Los Angeles Clippers but rather a high school boys team from Chatsworth: Sierra Canyon.

If you had previously doubted the level of attention in Sierra Canyon, who feature Bronny James Jr. and Zaire Wade, sons of LeBron James and Dwyane Wade, as well as top recruits BJ Boston and Ziaire Williams, their level of inclusion on ESPN’s slate of high school games should change that. ESPN will carry 15 Sierra Canyon games this season on their ESPN 3 channel, with the first one coming only six days from now, according to Eric Sondheimer of the Los Angeles Times.

Canyon has already played fall league games in preparation for their upcoming season, with some of the highlights from those games leaking out to show pretty hyped gyms including LeBron James and Dwyane Wade. If those tune-ups are any indication, atmosphere for these games should be remarkable to witness.

 

LeBron on seeing his sons rundown from AAU tournaments: ‘This isn’t right’

LeBron James said that he sees the toll of AAU basketball first-hand, with his two sons, and says the status quo bothers him.

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When it comes to his own load management, LeBron James has a pretty simple approach. But when it comes to the well-being of his children and the thousands of kids that play youth basketball on the summer tournament circuit, James has many more thoughts as a parent of two hoops hopefuls.

In an interview with Yahoo’s Chris Haynes, James tackled the issue of youth players coming into the league rundown and with injuries. He discussed seeing his sons being forced to play three games in one session at an AAU tournament this year and how jarring it was for him to see his kids rundown, explaining:

Because a lot of these tournaments don’t have the best interest of these kids, man. I see it. It’s like one time, they had to play a quarterfinal game, a semifinal game and a championship game starting at 9 a.m., and the championship game was at 12:30 p.m. Three games. I was like, ‘Oh, hell no.’ And my kids were dead tired. My kids were dead tired. This isn’t right. This is an issue.

Over the summer, the issue of youth basketball wearing down the game’s most promising young players was the topic of a phenomenal expose by ESPN’s Baxter Holmes. And as if the topic didn’t need anymore support, No. 1 overall pick Zion Williamson needed knee surgery days before the season began and No. 2 pick Ja Morant had a knee procedure over the summer.

The issue of players entering the league with chronic injuries is not one that will go away soon. And while LeBron can only influence the workloads of his two sons, it’s clear he doesn’t like the non-stop cycle that often chews up and spits out players before they get a chance to be fully-formed.

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