Breaking down Bronny James’ chances at being drafted
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Bronny James is not expected to be a first-round pick in next month’s NBA Draft.
Nevertheless, he is now expected to remain in the draft after being medically cleared. My take on Bronny is very much the same as it was a year ago. He was never the one-and-done lottery candidate that some suggested. However, he was a physically gifted athlete who shot the ball well from the 3-point line and was a very good defender. In short, he was a player who could impact winning, but not nearly as dynamic as his name suggested. While his production at USC this year was even less than conservative projections from a year ago, that came after the summer’s cardiac arrest and subsequently missing the entire preseason.
From Day 1, I’ve maintained that I believed LeBron James when he said, repeatedly, that his goal was to play with his son. LeBron rarely says this by accident, especially when he repeats himself. Although he’s qualified those statements recently, I still maintain that Bronny to the Lakers, whether that be in the second round or as an undrafted two-way player, is the most plausible scenario. If not the Lakers, you can bet LeBron and Klutch by extension, will be very deliberate about what organizations they allow to be associated with him. Oklahoma City, San Antonio and Golden State are a few that could reportedly get some consideration. But again, my belief is that Bronny will be in the Lakers organization.
As for players who will be drafted in the first round, the Hawks had a 3% chance of getting the top pick in the NBA Draft. And yet, that’s exactly what happened, for the first time in the franchise’s history.
The Houston Rockets were improbable winners as well, seizing a roughly 5% chance to land in the top three.
The only bad news for the Hawks and Rockets, is that this wasn’t the ideal year to be lucky, as this year’s draft lacks much star power atop the class and is instead characterized by a lot of parity.
With very little star power or separation atop the class, my first mock draft with the order set reflects the possibility that you’ll see teams think about fit much earlier than normal.
