The rookie and famed son of LeBron James has his work cut out for him, according to talent evaluators.
One of the underlying storylines surrounding the quickly approaching NBA season is how guard Bronny James—the son of legendary forward LeBron James—will fit with the Los Angeles Lakers, and what his role on the team would be.
For most second-round picks, the first year on an NBA roster would be one focused on development behind the scenes—not necessarily playing time. Think G League stints, scout-team looks, and limited in-game time at the NBA level in the rotation.
Instead, Bronny James’s outlook, at least from fans and the media, is a bit different because of who his dad is. However,Bronny is not the prospect LeBron was, and will very likely never become the caliber of player that his dad is. But with all the outside media pressure, Bronny’s development could be undermined for the sake of storylines this NBA season—which has executives wondering what the end result of this will be.
“The expectations for Bronny by the fan base and by LeBron and Rich Paul are not commensurate with the reality of his game,” an Eastern Conference executive told ESPN’s Baxter Holmes. “If they had any real idea of how far away Bronny is, they just would not have done this.”
Another NBA scout noted that Bronny’s “set up for failure.”
“It’s like, what’s the expectation here?” the scout added.
Bronny’s role and ultimate success could come down to his talent and how he develops inside the Lakers’ system, but color talent evaluators skeptical about what the famed son of LeBron James will become.
