NBA insider explains why Lakers are unlikely to draft Bronny James

'The team that drafts Bronny James could also get LeBron James as a free agent' has been a narrative floating in the NBA universe over the past year or so, especially after the Los Angeles Lakers star declared his intentions to play with his son before hanging up the tights. The narrative only picked up steam after Savannah James – during a commercial for Beats by Dre – urged her husband to play with their sons before calling it quits.

If Bronny, a freshman at USC, declares for the 2024 NBA Draft, there’s the real possibility of the stars aligning for the James family – especially with James holding a Player Option in the final year of his contract with the Lakers.

Could James become a free agent just to join the team that drafts Bronny? Or would the Lakers – not in possession of their first-round pick this year – make a move or two to acquire Bronny? On Monday’s edition of “NBA Today” on ESPN, Adrian Wojnarowski ruled out the possibility of Lakers drafting Bronny, leaving the door open for James to bolt from the Purple & Gold.

"The Lakers are not a developmental program,” said Wojnarowski. “They are a win-now program. What's going to be best for Bronny James, what he wants, and what they want as an organization… I don’t think it’s as cut and dry as all of it is around the idea of whether he [James] can play with him [Bronny] or not. I’m not sure that’s all that’s at stake here.”

As exciting as the prospect of LeBron and Bronny doing a Ken Griffey Sr. and Jr. sounds, Bronny is currently not highly rated by scouts ahead of this year's draft. The 19-year-old guard suffered a cardiac arrest during a USC practice session last July, causing him to miss the first four months of the NCAA season. Bronny ultimately made his collegiate debut on Dec. 10. He currently averages 5.9 points, 2.6 assists and 2.6 rebounds per game for the Trojans.