After Bronny announced that he’d be declaring for this year’s draft, questions around his potential pick started to fly around. Not only that, but teams had the first thought of luring LeBron if they managed to draft Bronny. Many believed the 18-year-old to get his name called in the second round. Whereas others strongly recommended James Jr. to be a first-rounder. Well, most mock drafts project Bronny to be a 55th pick at best. It is mainly due to his freshman-year performance with the Trojans. His numbers weren’t up to anyone’s expectations and also weren’t exactly NBA-worthy.

However, following his recent workouts with teams and the recent Draft Combine, there seems to be more interest in the teen. Regardless of other teams eyeing Bronny in the draft, the more interesting story would be that of the Lakers and the Suns. Phoenix has the 22nd pick in this year’s draft, close to the Lakers 17th which they received during the AD trade in 2019. Though this would only make sense if Bronny gets drafted in the first round. In a recent episode of his podcast, Bill Simmons was quite confident of this scenario.

“I think Bronny is gonna go on the first round because I think that’s going to be encouraged.”, said Simmons. When asked about whether it would be the league or Klutch Sports Group pushing Bronny in the first round, Simmons said, “The latter.”. If the favorable scenario does play out, the Lakers would be better off picking Bronny at 17. Earlier, LA planned to pick Zach Edey at 17 while going for Bronny in the second round. However, the common media strategist between LeBron and Mat Ishbia might agitate the Lakers’ plan for Bronny.

This unexpected media manipulation can force the Lakers to draft Bronny at 17 instead of Edey or any other player. It is no wonder that the Suns will be on the lookout for Bronny, standing dangerously close to the Lakers in the first round. This comes with the fact that Bronny’s arrival would possibly initiate LeBron’s move out to Phoenix.

Will LeBron leave the Lakers for Bronny?

With the given possibilities, the Lakers will give their all in drafting Bronny. On the other hand, if they fail to pick the teen, James will consider leaving LA. There are a lot of reasons to back this, with LeBron sharing his desire to play with his son a few years ago. The King has won four titles, and if there’s anything he would love to accomplish more than a fifth ring would be to play alongside Bronny.

This will be a historic feat that will go down in American sports history. Also, if James does end up with his son sharing the same locker room, there will be talks around James’ retirement the following season. It will be interesting to see this year’s draft with the lead story being around Bronny. Why is that? It’s because the 2024 NBA Draft does not have any sort of star power.

We saw Wemby as one of the most hyped prospects last year. Paolo Banchero in 2022, Cade Cunningham and Jalen Green in ’21, and so on. However, this year, there aren’t many notable names besides Bronny. He will definitely be on the lookout on the board and it is possible to see unexpected franchises taking interest in him.

What are your thoughts on the Bronny situation? Do you think the Lakers can manage to bring him? Or will LeBron leave the purple and gold for his son? Let us know in the comments.