Would an NBA team draft Bronny James for a chance at LeBron?

Whichever side of the GOAT debate you fall on, LeBron James is arguably the most accomplished basketball player ever. 

He has the record for the most points scored. He’s number one for games, minutes, points and steals in the postseason. He is the first player in NBA history to reach 30,000 points, 10,000 rebounds and 10,000 assists. He was just named to the All-Star team for a record 20th time. He also went to the NBA Finals eight straight years and has won four total championships in his career.

Even with all of these achievements, however, he seems to believe something is missing: a chance to play with his kid. For years now, LeBron has talked about his desire to share the court with Bronny, his oldest son, saying “I need to be on the floor with my boy.”

In early 2023, it looked as though Bronny would be following in his famous father’s footsteps. He was named a five-star recruit and was headed to USC. But then during a workout on campus in July, he went into cardiac arrest, which was caused by a congenital heart defect, it was later revealed.

While Bronny has made a full recovery, his season thus far with the Trojans has been pretty much a disaster. The team is flailing and he’s doing little to help. When Bronny was a top prospect, it was easy to imagine him being a high pick in the draft and chosen by a team that saw him as a valuable asset. But what about now?

Despite LeBron looking through dad-colored glasses and saying that Bronny could play for the Lakers “right now,” the younger James looks nowhere near ready for the NBA. While it’s still early, many mock drafts don’t have Bronny being picked at all — either in the first or second round.

This begs a couple of questions. First, would the Lakers — in dire need of talent — potentially waste a draft pick on Bronny just to keep LeBron around? Or would another team take Bronny just for the sake of luring LeBron?

While LeBron’s playing days are coming to an end, it’s clear that he still has a lot of game left. Knowing that he wants to play so badly with his son — and might take a big pay cut to do it — it probably wouldn’t be much of a surprise if a team took a gamble on Bronny.

Surely several teams would want LeBron, but what if it were the Cleveland Cavaliers that decided to draft Bronny? Whether you love him or hate him, LeBron going back to where it all started and potentially competing for a championship with his son would be a fantastic storybook ending to his career.