Bronny James is not going to be a lottery pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, but he continues to be the most talked-about prospect from this class. An NBA scout recently made headlines when he told HoopsHype that Bronny reminds him of Austin Rivers.
“I think Bronny will go in the draft because of who he is, and some team will really think LeBron will come if they draft him,” the scout said. “… He’s solid, not spectacular. He knows how to play. He can handle the ball well enough. If you leave him alone, he’ll drill a three. He reminds me of Austin Rivers as a player, and he’s stayed in the league for over a decade.”
I think Rivers, who has career averages of 8.5 points, 2.0 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 0.7 steals, and 0.2 blocks per game, is a somewhat fair comparison. He was a solid defender and playmaker who also had a couple of seasons where he was a productive scorer.
Rivers was better than Bronny at both the high school and college level, though, which was why he ended up being selected with the 10th pick of the 2012 NBA Draft. There is no chance that the 19-year-old will go that high in this draft, which is set to be held on June 26-27 at Barclays Center.
Bronny appears to be the biggest wildcard of the draft, though, as no one is quite sure where he might end up. Indiana Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle hinted at James being selected before the 50th pick, but he didn’t give his pick for which team would make that decision.
It has been reported that the Dallas Mavericks, Carlisle’s former team, are interested in drafting Bronny. The Mavericks have the 58th pick, though, and don’t expect him to still be available then.
Austin Rivers Does Not Want Bronny To Play With LeBron James
The Los Angeles Lakers are another team to reportedly show interest in Bronny and they have been linked with him for quite some time now, thanks to LeBron James. He has previously expressed his desire to play with his son, but Rivers said LeBron and Bronny shouldn’t play together.
“I don’t want to see Bronny play with his dad, I really don’t. I went through something similar situation. A lot of people start discrediting what you have done. This kid has been in the limelight since he was born… Right now, his numbers don’t scream pro.”
“Him getting drafted and playing with his dad, at this point in his career because his success is not at the top-tier level, I don’t want that negativity to come his way. He doesn’t deserve it. He’s not a top-10 pick, he’s not a lottery pick, I was all those things, and still when I went to play for the Clippers, ‘You’re only in the league because of your dad’, after me being the No. 1 player in the United States two years prior.”
“Doc’s great, but LeBron James is the most popular player to ever play besides who, Michael Jordan? It would be a lot. I hope for the kid that he’s able to, not only play in the NBA but play somewhere where he can niche out his own identity.”
Rivers made some fairly good points there. He had to deal with a lot of negativity when he played under his father Doc Rivers for the Los Angeles Clippers. Anything involving LeBron gets amplified and the negativity would as well, in this case.
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