With free agency looming, LeBron James is no longer fixated on the idea of playing alongside his son, Bronny, his agent said Wednesday.
In February 2022, James said he’d “do anything” to play alongside his oldest son, who entered the 2024 NBA Draft after one season at USC, but according to Rich Paul of Klutch Sports, things have changed since then.
“LeBron has let go of the idea that he has to play with Bronny,” Paul said. ESPN “If he does, he does. If he doesn’t, he doesn’t. If the Lakers draft Bronny with the 55th pick, [LeBron] “He will re-sign. If he does, I would force them to take him at 17th. We don’t need leverage. The Lakers can draft Bronny and LeBron won’t re-sign.”
The Lakers enter the two-day draft with the 17th pick in the first round (generally considered too much for Bronny) and the 55th pick in the second round.
The Ringer’s Bill Simmons said on a podcast earlier this week that there was “huge buzz in Phoenix” about the James siblings potentially opting out of their contracts with the Lakers and becoming free agents by June 30. But Paul also made Phoenix’s position clear.
“LeBron’s not going to Phoenix for a minimum contract either,” the agent said. “We can block that now.”
The Suns can’t pay him the $100 million plus signing bonus the Lakers can afford, so the only way out is a sign-and-trade, but the new collective bargaining agreement makes that extremely difficult.
Bronny had refused to work out with multiple teams, only the Suns and Lakers, and Paul said it was a strategic move to try to get his client to his desired destination.
“This is nothing new,” Paul says. “The goal is to find a team that values your talent and then get them there. It’s important to understand the context and realize that this has been a strategy for many of my clients for many years, especially those like Bronny who need growth. My work is deliberate.”
Paul said the interest from other teams hasn’t stopped.
“There are other teams that like Bronny, like Minnesota, Dallas, Toronto. If it’s not the Lakers, it’s going to be some other team,” Paul explained. “Minnesota wants to get Bronny, but I don’t know who the owner is going to be.” [Mavericks GM] Nico Harrison is like an uncle to Bronny. If the Lakers don’t take him at 55th, Dallas will take him at 58th and get a guaranteed contract. [Ujiri, Raptors president,] I love him. You can get him at 31 without even seeing him. It’s not all about training for these teams.”
