The Lakers are going to keep hold of the 17th pick in the 2024 NBA Draft. As per Adrian Wojnarowski, the Pelicans are choosing to defer the first-round pick they are owed by the Lakers as part of the Anthony Davis trade to next year. This pick will allow them to draft Bronny James in the first round to avoid him getting picked by another team in the second round of the draft.
“ESPN Sources with Johnathan Givony: The New Orleans Pelicans are planning to defer the Los Angeles Lakers’ first-round pick until 2025, clearing the way for LA to select 17th overall in the 2024 NBA Draft. Pick conditions were part of the Anthony Davis trade in 2019.”
ESPN Sources with @DraftExpress: The New Orleans Pelicans are planning to defer the Los Angeles Lakers’ first-round pick until 2025, clearing the way for LA to select 17th overall in the 2024 NBA Draft. Pick conditions were part of the Anthony Davis trade in 2019.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) May 31, 2024
The Lakers have been the team most strongly linked with drafting Bronny James, to no one’s surprise. With LeBron James being the centerpiece of the Lakers, and him stating multiple times his desire to play with his son, the Lakers were always the favorites to land Bronny in the draft.
While other teams such as the Suns and Warriors have been linked to Bronny, the Lakers are perhaps the only team that is willing to prioritize acquiring James in the draft. And this pick gives them the perfect chance to select him without any stiff competition.
Many draft analysts have stated that Bronny is not a high-level prospect in this year’s draft, which meant that most teams with a high lottery pick wouldn’t go for him unless they felt they had a strong chance to land his father LeBron in free agency.
Bronny himself has also helped narrow down which teams could realistically pick him, as he turned down private workouts with almost all NBA teams, except the Lakers and the Suns. While the Suns can’t pay LeBron James his expected salary in free agency, there is a chance that they draft Bronny James anyway to try and lure LeBron.
Will Bronny James Succeed With The Lakers?
Barring any surprises, Bronny James will be a Laker next season. While the Warriors are interested in landing him in the second round, and the Suns are an outside option, there is little reason to expect the Lakers to forgo the chance to select Bronny with the 17th overall pick in the draft.
Being selected at 17 will be way higher than initial projections made regarding Bronny. Many analysts expected him to be a second-round pick, as he doesn’t have the size and skill set to be a lottery pick. Many expect this to be the case because he is the son of LeBron James.
The Lakers could take a chance and use the 17th pick for another player and hope that Bronny doesn’t get picked up in the second round. The Lakers also have the 55th overall pick and could hold off on picking Bronny until they get on the board in the second round.
Of course, that strategy has its upside, as the Lakers could get Bronny and another young player who could contribute at a high level. But leaving Bronny on the board could be too tantalizing for other teams who have earlier second-round picks than the Lakers.
For the most part, Bronny has said all the right things, as he wants and expects to be treated like any NBA prospect, noting that he hopes that teams will draft him for the player he is rather than who his father is. However, there is no avoiding the elephant in the room. And Bronny wouldn’t be in such deep consideration to be a draft prospect were it not for his father.
It was recently revealed that 37% of bets on the drafts have Bronny James going first overall this year. While that is highly unlikely, it does speak to how much teams are considering drafting him this year, and how fans perceive his attempts to enter the league.
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