USC Basketball: What Should Bronny James Do This Summer?

The former four-star prep recruit has had a bumpy college start.

USC Trojans freshman combo guard Bronny James can’t help that he’s basketball royalty.

The eldest son of seemingly immortal Los Angeles Lakers All-Star power forward LeBron James, Bronny was always going to have to work his tail off to get out from under his four-time NBA MVP dad’s 6’9” shadow.

But Bronny managed to carve his own path at local Chatsworth powerhouse Sierra Canyon School, emerging as an intriguing four-star recruit in his own right. He wasn’t going to necessarily adorn the cover of, I don’t know, Sports Illustrated on his own merits necessarily, but he was good enough to warrant a group cover alongside younger brother and teammate Bryce and their All-NBA dad.

This isn’t a Marcus or Jeffrey Jordan situation either. Bronny seemed good enough to legitimately have a shot at a pro career coming out of high school, but by his senior year it was clear he’d need additional seasoning. The 6’4” guard can’t shoot yet. Much of his game is built on sheer athleticism, and as such he thrives more on defense than as a scorer just yet. He’s also exhibited some promise as a distributor, although he doesn’t have his dad’s otherworldly upside as a playmaker.

Simply put, he’s not quite ready for the next level. He has fallen off most mock drafts, after being projected as high as a mid-lottery pick. But he didn’t enroll at USC because he needed a degree.

He joined what was considered yet another top-10 Andy Enfield recruiting class, along five-star Murrieta, Georgia product Isaiah Collier, in the hopes of building his game for the NBA.

So should he jump ship after what’s been a disappointing 2023-24 season, on both a team and individual level, and hope some pro squad takes a flyer on him in the second round?

The hardworking 19-year-old has enough moxie and box office intrigue to make the pros. But he could probably be had as an undrafted free agent. Yes, LeBron James has threatened to sign with whichever team drafts Bronny, but Bronny is still so raw offensively that it seems entirely possible the Lakers could just sign him as a two-way player.

Bronny doesn’t exactly have financial pressure to declare as a one-and-done player. Yes, his dad is a billionaire, but Bronny is a big enough deal in his own right to warrant major Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) coin. His portfolio is currently valued at $7.5 million in endorsement money. It would really behoove him to stay a technical amateur, undergoing more seasoning in Enfield’s system for at least one more year, when he can hopefully enjoy significantly more team success, to boot.