NBA Draft 2024: Where will Bronny James land in the upcoming draft?

It is not common that a player with a 2nd round projection is the talk of the NBA Draft, but this year, the Bronny James saga has been the main talking point leading up to the June 26th and 27th NBA Draft. James has faced a little bit of everything during his draft process, and the one thing nobody can question is how well he has handled all of the unnecessary scrutiny that has come his way for narratives that he has no say over. 

In high school, James was one of the best players in the country at Sierra Canyon and went on to become a McDonald's All-American, where he impressed. Later,  after beginning his off-season work with the USC Trojans, he suffered from a cardiac arrest, which led him to miss all of preseason and a bulk of the first half of his college basketball season. He went on to have an underwhelming freshman year when he did return, yet he still announced he was declaring for the upcoming NBA Draft when many thought he should've stayed in college.

Some believe he should go undrafted, and others see what I see, and that is upside. James had one of the more impressive NBA draft combines. He showed off a little bit of everything, from his steady and consistent jump shot to his athletic and versatile style of play and his immense amount of effort on the defensive end, where NBA scouts believe he can thrive. After all that work off-season work, James jumped nearly 50 spots from a prospect ranked in the 90's to the late 40's after the combine and his public workouts.

James will more than likely be a second-round pick, but he has reportedly taken workouts with the Los Angeles Lakers and the Phoenix Suns, and according to his agent, Rich Paul, the minimal workouts are by design. 

""This is nothing new," Paul said. "The goal is to find a team that values your guy and try to push him to get there. It's important to understand the context and realize that this has always been the strategy with many of my clients throughout the years, especially those in need of development like Bronny. My stuff is by design." per ESPN's Jonathan Givony.

The Suns hold the 22nd pick, and the Lakers hold the 17th and 55th picks. Both teams also have the flexibility of potentially moving up or down if they see a placement for Bronny James that has some value in selecting him. Outside of these two potential landing spots, Rich Paul has said there are other teams that love James and would be open to selecting him. 

"This does not mean that those are the only two teams interested in the budding star." There are other teams that love Bronny. For example, Minnesota, Dallas, and Toronto. If it's not the Lakers, it will be someone else. Minnesota would love to get Bronny in, but I don't know who their owner is going to be. [Mavs GM] Nico Harrison is like an uncle to Bronny. If the Lakers don't take him at 55, Dallas would take him at 58 and give him a guaranteed deal. Masai [Ujiri, Raptors president] loves him. They could take him without even seeing him at 31. Workouts aren't everything for these teams," Paul added.

The Los Angeles Lakers remain the most prominent and ideal fit for the Southern California guard, but there will be teams that do their due diligence during the draft and inquire about Bronny James, who is hoping to prove all the doubters wrong once his name is called on draft night.