BROOKLYN, N.Y. — Bronny James, the son of NBA superstar and Akron native LeBron James, is joining his dad in the league—and becoming his teammate, selected by the Los Angeles Lakers with the No. 55 pick of the 2024 NBA Draft.
After one season with the USC Trojans, Bronny averaged 4.8 points, 2.1 assists, 2.8 rebounds and 0.8 steals in 25 games. The 6-4, 210-pound guard entered college as the No. 19 overall recruit after growing his game with Sierra Canyon in California after LeBron left Cleveland for the Los Angeles Lakers.
In July of 2023, Bronny suffered a cardiac arrest at a practice. He was diagnosed with a congenital heart defect and cleared to play, making his collegiate debut four months later.
Now, Bronny will look to take his basketball career to the next level with the Lakers, with his dad by his side.
For years, LeBron has talked about a desire to play on the same team as Bronny but had seemingly cooled to that concept. LeBron had the potential to become a free agent if he opts out of his player option—the deadline to do so is just around the corner on June 29. That is now seemingly off the table with Bronny joining the Lakers.
LeBron posted before the draft about his emotions surrounding this next step in his eldest son's basketball journey.
"Not a feeling in the *** world better than being around raising my boys to MEN! Pops over here getting emotional as hell just thinking about yall journey so far! Thank you both for allowing me to be your DAD and be apart of your compass through life’s trials and tribulations! 🫡🤎🤴🏾🤴🏾," he wrote.
The two now can become the first father-son duo to play together in NBA history.
