After many direct sources from NBA teams have told the press that they’ve not been able to secure workouts with prospect Bronny James ahead of the 2024 NBA Draft, his agent Rich Paul has confirmed that he’s only permitted the youngster to work out individually with two clubs: the Lakers and the Suns.
The CEO of Clutch Sports Group admitted that these decision are made by design, and discarded any notion that the rising star has received different treatment than any other athlete throughout the pre-draft process. While Phoenix hold the No. 22 pick, the purple and gold team has Nos. 17 and 55, hoping to land Bronny in the second round.
“This is nothing new,” Paul assured. “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.”
Bronny James just went UNDRAFTED in the first round of the #NBADraft2024
“only draft me if you think im good enough.. and not because of my dad (LeBron)” 💀 pic.twitter.com/FDRNZzUAO8
— clip 🛸 (@clippedszn) June 27, 2024
The agent, who is also LeBron’s representative, explained that he’s always steered clients to ideal destinations, just as he did with Chris Livingston as the No. 58 pick in 2023, Brandon Boston Jr. at No. 51 pick in 2021, and even Talen Horton-Tucker, who was the No. 46 pick five years ago.
Paul also notes that he’s taken on similar strategies with first-round picks such as Darius Garland at No. 5 pick in 2019 and MarJon Beauchamp, who was the No. 24 pick in 2022. He assures that shielding players from certain workouts is a common practice, despite things like withholding medical information is now prohibited by the new CBA.
“Bronny is the same as my previous clients,” the representative insisted. “I got the word out early to teams that if you plan on bringing Bronny in, here’s what you need to know: If you won’t give him a real deal, there’s nothing to talk about. It’s hard to get real development on a two-way deal.
Paul is convinced that it’s all about the fit, not the team. “I don’t care about him going to the Lakers, or Phoenix, or about what number he gets picked. It’s about fit,” he kept at it. “If Bronny’s name was Charles Jacobsen and he was my client — I would do the same thing: identify teams that have real interest.”
LeBron has tried his best to keep out of his eldest son’s draft process and assured the press that “the young man will decide” himself
Despite the fact that the oldest player in the league has said many times he’d like to play alongside his eldest son before he retires, he also mentioned after his final match of the past campaign that he hasn’t “given much thought lately” about competing with Bronny.
LeBron, who is about to play his historic 22nd season, doesn’t want to influence the 19-year-old’s decision and believes he’s a man of his own. “The young man will decide what he wants to do and how he wants his career to go,” James said at the time.
Just as the college athlete decided to test for the draft in May and play at the combines, he admitted that his mindset wasn’t set on playing with his father. Bronny said that the only important thing was him “getting to the league.”
“LeBron is off this idea of having to play with Bronny,” agent Paul told the press. “If he does, he does. But if he doesn’t, he doesn’t. There’s no deal made that it’s guaranteed that if the Lakers draft Bronny at 55, he [LeBron] will re-sign. If that was the case, I would force them to take him at 17. We don’t need leverage. The Lakers can draft Bronny and LeBron doesn’t re-sign. LeBron is also not going to Phoenix for a minimum deal. We can squash that now.”
