The Los Angeles Lakers may have had a very quiet offseason, as they have mostly stood pat with the same roster that only got them as far as the first round of the 2024 NBA playoffs. Nonetheless, the Lakers can still be proud that they came away as one of the winners of the 2024 NBA Draft. Not only did they snag one of the best players in college basketball last season in Dalton Knecht, they also managed to select Bronny James with the 55th overall pick, much to the delight of his father LeBron James.
It is certainly a huge achievement for LeBron to be able to play on the same roster in the NBA as his firstborn son, allegations of nepotism notwithstanding. But there certainly are questions about how a father and son teammate dynamic would work in the locker room. We have seen a father and son connection between coach and player in the past, but for them to be, for all intents and purposes, equals in the locker room? That will be a very interesting subplot to keep an eye on.
Nonetheless, LeBron James will not be giving preferential treatment to his son. In fact, the Lakers star wants Bronny to be able to call him out and hold him accountable like any other teammate would.
“It’s going to work just like any one other of my teammates,” James told Craig Melvin on TODAY. “I’m going to hold him accountable, and he should hold me accountable when I do things not right. I can separate dad from teammate. And, I think, as he continues to grow, and as he continues to learn, I hope he’s able to separate son from teammate, as well.”
Of course, this is the ideal scenario; but as much as LeBron James would want this to be the case, it will be difficult for Bronny not to see him as anyone else as his father. But this may end up being a moot point in the end, as Bronny may not spend too much time in the Lakers locker room anyway in his rookie campaign.
A brief analysis of Bronny James’ Lakers future
The Lakers made a very strong commitment for Bronny James by signing him to a guaranteed four-year deal, a contract structure typically reserved for players teams believe could be long-term keepers. James is only 19 years old and he has a long future of development ahead of him, and the Lakers want to be the team that turns him into a contributor.
However, Bronny has a long way to go before he becomes even worthy of consideration of a rotation role. He is very raw offensively; even in the glimpses we have seen of him in Summer League, he hasn’t exactly shown too much improvement when it comes to creating off the dribble.
The good news is that Bronny has all the makings of a positive defender in the NBA. He has the size, length, and instincts to be a disruptive presence on that end of the floor. Him being LeBron James’ son means that he has all the athletic gifts in the world, which gives him a leg up in his process of becoming an impactful player in the NBA.
But with the Lakers wanting to win now, Bronny is unlikely to see many minutes for the Purple and Gold in the 2024-25 season. For his development’s sake, he will be spending the majority of his rookie campaign in the team’s G-League affiliate, the South Bay Lakers.
Thus, as interesting as keeping a close eye on how the LeBron James and Bronny locker room dynamic will be unfolding, we may not get to witness too much of this due to practical reasons.
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