Easily the biggest storyline of the 2024 NBA Draft was whether or not the Los Angeles Lakers would draft Bronny James and team him up with his father, LeBron . Sure enough, with the 55th overall pick of the draft, the Lakers selected Bronny, and fans everywhere went wild.
Some folks liked the move, while others believed that Bronny was only in the NBA because of his father. Rasheed Wallace was one guy who liked the move, and he recently explained why he doesn’t care about any of the nepotism claims that the Lakers newest player is facing.
Wallace likes that the Lakers pulled the trigger on Bronny
Bronny was a highly touted prospect prior to his suffering cardiac arrest in August of 2023, which threw his basketball development path off the rails a bit. He still suited up for the USC Trojans last year, but his play was underwhelming, to say the least.
Given how LeBron made it clear he wanted to play alongside his son, many folks figured that Bronny would enter the 2024 draft and fall to the Lakers. Once that happened, nepotism claims came flying in, but Wallace doesn’t want to hear any complaints about the Lakers' big move.
“I love it,” Rasheed said on Sheed & Tyler . “S***, we see nepotism every damn day in the league. We see it in the front office with guys hiring their way, way underqualified casts. Their sons, their nephews, doing it as a favor for their agent who has this person or that person. I love the fact that the Lakers drafted young Bronny.”
“It’s different, number one. Number two, you get a chance, the whole father-son story, that’s gonna be the biggest story of probably this year and next year. I’m with them on that. The nepotism, we see that s*** everyday, so I ain’t mad with them about that, they say what they want. I’m happy for Rich (Paul) and Bron and Bronny,” Wallace added.
Can Bronny help the LA get back on track?
It’s clear that Bronny has the potential to become a star in the NBA, but he’s an incredibly raw player right now. Expecting him to contribute immediately for the Lakers is unreasonable, even though he’s going to be on the same team as his father.
There will definitely be a couple of cases where LeBron and Bronny share the court together, but it’s not like they are both going to be running the show for the Lakers. The younger James is likely going to play sparingly as he works on acclimating himself to the NBA.
The best chance Bronny has at finding consistent minutes in the NBA is if he can continue to play tough defense and knock down his three-point shots. He struggled from behind the arc throughout Los Angeles’ Summer League action, but again, he’s only 19 years old.
Wallace is right in saying this will be a big storyline, but chances are it’s going to be overblown by fans everywhere. Still, that doesn’t take away from the fact that seeing the first father-and-son duo on the same team will be awesome, even if some fans believe it’s just a case of nepotism.
Related: Bronny James is open about his struggles in the Las Vegas Summer League: "I just feel like I'm in a little slump right now"
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