NBA Analyst Kenny Smith Defends Lakers' Decision to Draft Bronny James

John Robinson | Aug 26, 2024

Jul 6, 2024; San Francisco, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Bronny James Jr. (9) celebrates from the bench during the third quarter against the Sacramento Kings at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports / Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

The Los Angeles Lakers snatched the spotlight during the 2024 NBA Draft when they selected point guard LeBron James Jr. with the 55th overall selection in the second round. The former McDonald's All-American who prefers to be called 'Bronny' was on the receiving end of a lot of criticism after a lackluster freshman season at the University of Southern California.

As the oldest son of arguably the greatest to ever touch a basketball in Lebron, Bronny's road to the NBA was never going to be without controversy. Most people believe nepotism played a role in James Jr.'s selection to the storied NBA franchise as he joins his father as the first ever active father-son duo in professional basketball.

There were many in the basketball community that believed the Lakers could have selected a more deserving player in the second round of the draft after he averaged 4.8 points in 19.3 minutes per game as a USC Trojan. Ironically, there has been a plethora of players who averaged similar statistics prior to being drafted to the NBA throughout the year. Most recently, Milwaukee Bucks rookie AJ Johnson was drafted ahead of James Jr. in the first round after he averaged 2.9 points per game as a member of the Illawarra Hawks of the NBL in Australia.

The NBA is a league that has always prioritized youth, potential, and development when selecting prospects in the draft. There have been a number of critics who have been disingenuous when evaluating James Jr., especially those who purposely look past the fact that the former USC Trojan missed a majority of his collegiate training camp after suffering a cardiac arrest over the summer of 2023.

Bronny shined at the NBA scouting combine, recording a 40.5-inch vertical leap, which was the fourth-highest among combine participants. Not only was his athleticism on display, he showed off some serious 3-point shooting potential going 19-for-25 in the combine's rhythm shooting drill. This performance ranked second-highest among all participants.

Bronny James just crushed the 3-point star shooting drill at the NBA draft combine. 19/25, good for second place. pic.twitter.com/50UVXXy3GY

— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) May 14, 2024

Long time Rockets guard turned legendary TNT analyst Kenny 'The Jet' Smith defended the Lakers decision to draft James Jr. in the second round. Responsible Gaming sports reporter DJ Siddiqi sat down with Smith to learn his thoughts on the decision made by the Los Angeles front office.

"I think as the 55th pick he deserved that.," Smith said. "That means that when you're in that second round, we're waiting on you, we're waiting for you to develop. That's what that really means. And he's one of those players who is a McDonald's All-American, he was one of the top guards in his class as a freshman, that's what they're waiting on. The same kid who played with him at USC, Isaiah Collier, was drafted in the first round. He didn't have a great year either in terms of USC basketball. We're waiting on him, we're waiting on Bronny."

Smith believes the 'misfortune' that James Jr. experienced was a blessing in disguise because now he will able to play alongside his father with a team that will pour tons of time and energy into his development.