Ex-NBA Coach Claims Bronny James Will Not Play In The League Even If Teams Draft Him

A few days from now, basketball fans will be feasting their eyes upon the future! From the 26 to the 27 of June, the Barclays Center in New York will be playing host to the 78 edition of the NBA’s annual draft. Amongst the crowd of aspiring players looking to get into the league is one individual whose presence is generating the most attention from analysts. That person is Bronny James, son of Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James. Despite possessing the name and the genes of one of the greatest NBA players of all time, the 19-year-old candidacy’s has received mixed reviews, given his abysmal track record during his college days. This has convinced a former NBA coach that Bronny may get through the draft, but he won’t be able to reach the main lineup of his respective franchise for quite some time.

Sometime ago, former Washington Wizards player Gilbert Arenas released another episode of his long-running show. With Brandon Jennings and former coach Rashad McCants joining in as guest hosts, the crew proceeded to discuss Bronny James’s potential destination in the NBA. McCants highlighted his belief that no matter where the 19-year-old heads, his team won’t allow him to play the regular season games for at least two years. While Brandon Jennings disagreed with this theory, McCants used last year’s 49 overall pick, Emoni Bates, as an example. Even though Bates got taken in by the Cleveland Cavaliers, he was only made to appear in 15 of the regular season games.

“Bronny is not close to Emoni as far as that type of game” said the 39-year-old.

McCants held to his viewpoint that Bronny’s experience could go as far as to convince a franchise to put him on a “strictly development deal” for two years. However, Gilbert Arenas did not believe so. This is due to his belief that the Bronny James from his college days and the Bronny James now are two different individuals. Furthermore, by highlighting how Bronny “goes to the gym at 8 and leaves at 3”, the former player stated that a committed individual like him can surely find the path to success.

“When this person goes in a training camp, we don’t know what he’s going to be, right?” asked Arenas. “We’ve seen some people that we thought was trash, and then they get into the NBA and like ‘Damn how’s he playing?’”

During the 25 games he played for the University of South Carolina, LeBron James’ son could only average 4.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.1 assists. During the not-so-recent NBA Draft Combine, however, his performance saw quite an improvement. He went 19-25 while making three-pointers during the shooting star drill, with 12 of them being made in a row. Bronny would later go on to score 13 points during a game while shooting 40% from the field and dropping 2-3 three-pointers.

Bronny and LeBron James’ agent wants the young player to go where he can develop

Going into the NBA Draft, one of the biggest questions has been to which team will Bronny James head to. Since LeBron James had earlier stated that he would like to play alongside his son before retiring, the Los Angeles Lakers are currently standing out as the top contenders. However, LeBron’s remark has caused other teams to also gain interest with the hope that both father-son would align with them as part of a package deal. However, no matter where the player goes, the priority for him has already been established by his agent, Rich Paul.

During an interview with Kevin O’Connor on ‘The Ringer’, the 42-year-old highlighted how the potential picks in the upcoming draft, from the first to the last, are in somewhat need of development. For some players, the primary concern would be to rise quickly through the ranks and set their name in stone in the league. For LeBron James’ son, the first step is to get better.

“In Bronny’s case, he’ll say it himself, just getting somewhere where he can have the opportunity, the investment, the development, all those things are equally important,” said Paul.

Rashad McCants may be right in stating that Bronny James may not end up playing during his first two years. However, whether he is on the NBA court or off of it, the process of development will not stop.

Before leaving, be sure to check out some insights that Shaquille O’Neal’s ex-agent, Leonard Armato, shared about the Lakers legend’s infamous feud with the late Kobe Bryant.