The 2024 NBA Draft was the first in league history where the second round dominated the first in general fan interest. Unlike last year’s draft, in which #1 pick Victor Wembanyama was the dominant story, no single player was at the top of everyone’s charts. Instead, the major intrigue, even with a plethora of trades throughout the draft, centered on the 55th pick belonging to the Los Angeles Lakers. Would they? Dare they? They dared and did, selecting a 6”2’ 19-year-old guard with one year of college basketball under his belt — and a partial year at that — to join their roster.

Oh, and his dad works for the team. Some guy named LeBron.

Bronny James will be the first player in NBA history to play alongside his father, assuming LeBron stays with the Lakers as he can opt out of the final year of his current contract and become an unrestricted free agent. The common assumption is he will opt out and then sign a new three-year deal with the Lakers for a miserly $162M, following which he will retire at age 42 and then move into most likely team ownership, possibly with an expected expansion franchise in Las Vegas. Meanwhile, the Lakers will take “bring your kid to work” day to a new level.

While sharp disagreement with LeBron James’ political and societal views is the norm for this site, let’s give the man his due as a person and a basketball player. He has been married to his high school sweetheart since 2013. LeBron and Savannah James have three children together. Neither James, his three children, nor his wife have been on TMZ for all the wrong reasons. James has won four NBA championships with three different teams and the NBA Finals MVP award every year he won a championship. He has four Most Valuable Player awards. He has been selected for the All-Star Game 20 times. He has two Olympic gold medals and is playing for a third this summer.

Sentimentality and history aside, the question now becomes whether Bronny James can help the Lakers compete for a championship. They have a tough row to hoe. So much as getting to the Finals will be difficult in the extreme, as the NBA Western Conference is fiercely competitive. The Denver Nuggets, led by three-time league MVP Nikola Jokić, won it all in 2023 and remain in their prime. The Dallas Mavericks and Luka Dončić were no match for the Boston Celtics in this year’s NBA Finals but are still on the rise, as are the Oklahoma City Thunder and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. The Lakers have to hope James and the oft-injured Anthony Davis can stay healthy for a season and especially the postseason if they want any shot at another ring. No matter how much the NBA and its broadcast partners hope for a Lakers-Celtics 2025 Finals, they are more likely to get something along the lines of the Thunder versus the Indiana Pacers. Which, given my Hoosier roots, I wouldn’t mind. But one thing at a time.

For now, as Fanatics and Nike crank out Bronny James merchandise as fast as their overseas sweatshops allow, these questions will wait. The NBA 2024 Summer League, in which one would assume James the younger will participate, opens for all teams on July 12 in Las Vegas. However, the Lakers will begin play on July 6 in the California Classic Summer League, which will be in Sacramento and San Francisco. Said games are guaranteed to draw more interest than the Caitlin Clark-less USA women’s Olympic team. Sorry, ladies.