As the 2024 NBA Draft combine unfolds this week, some official measurement numbers for the participants have come out, including those of Bronny James, the son of Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James.
On Monday morning, news broke that Bronny James was medically cleared to be selected in the 2024 NBA Draft and to play in the NBA following a heart issue that sidelined him for a chunk of the 2023-24 season at USC. Not too much later, reports also surfaced that James would remain in the 2024 draft and not return to college.
So, now that he’s officially cleared to be drafted, and is officially keeping his name in the draft, let’s take a look at the first measurements for Bronny James:
Height (without shoes): 6’1.50”
Standing reach: 8’2.50”
Wingspan: 6’7.25”
Hand length: 8.50 inches
Hand width: 9.50 inches
James comes in pretty short compared to most NBA guards, standing right between 6’1 and 6’2. However, he does have a pretty impressive wingspan over 6’7, roughly six inches longer than his listed height — a physical trait that NBA teams typically like to see.
As more testing gets underway throughout the week, we’ll know more measurements soon, such as James’ vertical leap.
More on Bronny James
As a draft prospect, there’s simply not a whole lot of reason to believe Bronny James belongs in the pros just yet. Of course, the son of LeBron James is a different case in terms of his draft stock, since LeBron has made clear he would love to play with his son some day, making him an enticing selection for any franchise.
Bronny is a former McDonald’s All-American who suffered a very serious heart injury that took him out for some of the 2024 season. He then returned to average 4.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.1 assists and shot 36.6% from the field in 19 minutes per game as the eighth man on the worst USC team in nine years, which finished below .500 and never sniffed the NCAA Tournament or even an NIT berth. James also finished with the second-worst Box Plus-Minus of any player in the USC lineup.
Bronny James certainly could have benefitted from one (or more) extra years in college, but instead, he’ll try to make an NBA roster full of guys who are miles ahead of the dudes he sat behind at USC last season. Or, he’ll head straight to the G-League.
In his draft profile of James for The Ringer, NBA analyst Kevin O’Connor notes that Bronny is a “high-IQ decision maker” and a “good athlete with a strong frame and length” — which his wingspan vs. height numbers back up. However, O’Connor also says James “hasn’t proven to have touch” as a shooter and “lacks a great handle” as a creator. He ranks him 69th overall on his big board.
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