Bronny James Selected By Los Angeles Lakers In 2024 NBA Draft | TMZ Sports
Bronny James -- son of NBA superstar LeBron James -- is a Los Angeles Laker ... being selected with the 55th pick in the 2024 Draft.
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00:00We're going to start with some history that was made yesterday in the NBA, 19-year-old
00:12LeBron James Jr., Bronny James, drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers with the 55th overall
00:21pick in the NBA draft.
00:24Now joining his father, the legendary LeBron James, on the purple and gold mojo.
00:32This is, it's caused a raging debate across the sports world.
00:38People trying to decide whether or not this was nepotism at play.
00:43Did Bronny James deserve to be drafted?
00:45I don't know.
00:46All I do know, Mojo, is that, again, history was made because a father and son have never
00:53been in the league, in the NBA, at the same time.
00:57It's happened in other sports.
00:58It's happened in baseball with Griffey Sr. and Jr., but never in the NBA.
01:05And now, and look, they were teammates on the Mariners, but now you have not just two
01:12people and a dad and a son in the league, Mojo, you've also got them teammates on the
01:17Lakers.
01:18Yes, sure, LeBron James is not technically signed for this upcoming season.
01:22He is going to be on the Lakers.
01:24He is going to play with his son.
01:26So let's go to that moment yesterday when one of the NBA officials, Mojo, was at the
01:32podium and it's the moment everyone waited for.
01:36Would the Lakers and Rob Palenka pick Bronny James?
01:40Here's the moment.
01:41We got our answer.
01:42The 25th pick in the 2024 NBA draft, the Los Angeles Lakers select Bronny James.
02:08There it is, Mojo.
02:10The moment he has been waiting for for 19 years or whatever the age he was when he wanted
02:14to be a professional basketball player and the moment the dream came true yesterday.
02:18What do you think?
02:20There it is, Babcock.
02:21First and foremost, a major congratulations to Bronny James.
02:28No matter what anybody says, they can't take this moment away from you.
02:33It happened.
02:34You were drafted by the Lakers.
02:36So there's that.
02:39Let's break this one down now that that's out of the way.
02:44Was this a Nepo hire?
02:47Yes.
02:48I mean, of course it was.
02:50Right.
02:51I mean, this is the guy that averaged four points on the court in college basketball
02:55last year.
02:56I don't know too many guys averaging four points that get drafted, you know, a little
03:02picked up at all in the NBA.
03:05But here we are.
03:06You can't take it away from him when he went to the combine, when he performed for the
03:11teams directly, by all accounts, he killed it.
03:14He crushed it.
03:15Right.
03:16So he turned it on when he certainly needed to.
03:18So there's that.
03:19Another thing you can't take away from him.
03:21But yeah, did LeBron James have any say in making this happen?
03:28You got to think so.
03:29I mean, right after J.J. Redick gets the job as the head coach, as his podcast partner,
03:36he gets into the Lakers.
03:37So does his son.
03:38I think it's very easy to see who's really running this team by me.
03:42Let's face it.
03:43It's LeBron James.
03:45This generation's Michael Jordan.
03:47I mean, as far as I'm concerned, yeah, you can give this guy to roster spots for him
03:52to give the other one to whoever he wants.
03:55I don't care if it's his butler, it's his cook.
03:57When you have LeBron James on the team, yes, it's a huge addition for X's and O's for wins
04:04and losses, but also the financial ramifications of having a player like that on your team.
04:09I mean, you're talking about a top to bottom makeover of any franchise that he's associated
04:15with.
04:16So yeah, you're Bronny James.
04:19You're getting a little bit of extra luck on your side.
04:21I don't think this one would have went down without LeBron, but it is what it is, man.
04:26What are we going to do about it?
04:27Yeah, Mojo.
04:28I agree.
04:29I think, look, obviously LeBron's influence played a part here.
04:34I do think there are some negatives, though, because a lot of people have essentially called
04:38Bronny James trash and the only reason that he's in the NBA is because of his dad, and
04:43I do think he does have some talent.
04:45He's not his father.
04:46His father is obviously, goes without saying, I'll say it anyway, he's a generational talent.
04:51It's why he was the number one pick.
04:53That's why he was on the cover of Sports Illustrated as a high school student, as a teenager.
04:58It's why his games were on ESPN.
05:00So Bronny James is not LeBron.
05:02That's not, we know that.
05:04It does not mean, though, that he can't be an effective NBA player.
05:07Not just about the points you score in college.
05:10There are other things you try and project how a guy is going to be.
05:14We've seen plenty of people put up big numbers in college and then do squat in the NBA and
05:18also vice versa, and of course I think that's what Rob Palenka with this pick is hoping
05:23for.
05:24And speaking of the guy who is running the Lakers organization, he of course met with
05:29the media after he put in that LeBron James Jr. pick last night, was asked many questions
05:34about the selection from the media.
05:36Here's Rob Palenka.
05:38In the history of the NBA, there's never been a father and a son that have shared an NBA
05:46basketball court, and that feels like something that could be magical.
05:54We know and have to respect, of course, that LeBron has a decision about his opt-out, and
06:00I'm sure he and his family and his agent will deliberate what they're going to do there,
06:04and of course he has freedom to decide whatever's best for him and his family.
06:08But if it worked out that he was on our team next season, NBA history could be made.
06:16And NBA history should be made in a Lakers uniform.
06:19Mojo, the one thing that I would say about what Rob Palenka just said there, again, LeBron's
06:25going to be on the Lakers next year, there's no question about that.
06:29As a Lakers fan, and I get it, it's a great moment for the James family, I don't care
06:35if I'm a Lakers fan.
06:36I want this team to win games, not have some beautiful family reunion at Crypto.com.
06:42I could give a crap less about that if I'm a Lakers fan.
06:46I need this team to win.