As expected, the topic of nepotism came up during the broadcast of the 2024 NBA Draft. Bronny James’ Inevitable Choice By Los Angeles Lakers Coming up: Bronny’s agent, Rich Paul, reportedly told teams trying to draft him that LeBron James’ son would play in Australia if selected against his will, so it’s no wonder people who don’t know how common that particular agent tactic is are outraged.
But NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski had a message for ESPN viewers at home, saying that anyone lamenting the influence of nepotism in Bronny’s selection should look beyond LeBron James, Bronny and the Lakers to the league as a whole.
“The NBA is full of nepotism. I don’t want to suddenly be saying that because Bronny’s dad plays for the Lakers. Nepotism is rampant in this league,” Woj said on television.
— Harrison Faigen (@hmfaigen) June 27, 2024
Woj is right. Bucks’ Thanasis Antetokounmpo To Chris Smith, then with the KnicksOne could argue that there are plenty of examples throughout history of NBA roster spots going to slightly less talented players to please their more famous siblings. And it’s not just about the rosters. NBA coaches, too. Messy and The present sons Or a former head coach (or Even the players’ fathers), and the front office frequently high population Together descendants of Former executives…Needless to say, in many cases, of Owner‘ child In the same way.
Plus, it’s not like Bronny isn’t qualified at all: He was widely mocked as a first-round draft pick before his heart attack in 2023. By lotteryAnd despite a mostly disappointing season at USC, our own Ricky O’Donnell gave the Lakers a B for selecting him.
James’ freshman year at USC Terrifying heart episode He left the team at the beginning of the offseason and never found a place for himself after that. James is small for a guard at 6’1.5″ barefoot, but he has long arms, a strong chest and a good role player mentality. James isn’t a big scorer, but he can fight for loose balls, guard bigger players and stretch the floor as a three-point shooter. He’ll need a high level of shooting ability to thrive in the NBA, but he’s shown enough at the Sierra Canyon High School level that he has a chance to stick around.
This isn’t to say that nepotism is good, I’m just saying that in some ways this situation is exceptional nepotism by NBA standards, meaning I have literally never seen an NBA player who was not only able to play against or with my son, but also talented enough to get a team to draft him and good enough to play long enough to do so.
But while LeBron and Bronny are one-on-one in that regard, family members helping each other get on a roster or into a coaching or executive position in the NBA is nothing new, and we shouldn’t act like it is.
