When the Los Angeles Lakers decided to draft guard Bronny James out of USC in the second round of the 2024 NBA Draft, the move was met with all sorts of different responses. Some believed that it was a strong move, taking a kid that has good upside on his plate. But others saw it as a wasted pick considering that James submitted a poor first season with the Trojans.

Nonetheless, the Lakers made the move and are now looking to build a future that has James in it. The son of Lakers star LeBron James, Bronny has the weight of the world on his shoulders.

Everyone in the basketball community has an opinion about whether Bronny can succeed in the NBA but we won’t know until he is given the chance. But that hasn’t stopped rival executives from saying that he should have remained at USC for another season.

“For this whole thing to have even made it this far is surreal,” a Western Conference executive told Baxter Holmes of ESPN. “Analytically, if you just had the numbers on a page and had no name attached to it, he doesn’t project in any way, shape or form to be an NBA player. His measurables don’t project as an NBA player. There’s literally nothing about him on paper — if no name is attached to it — that makes this make sense.”

Bronny has shown strong instincts on the defensive end of the floor so far, in limited time in Summer League and preseason. However, his shot has been a work in progress and is an area that will need time to develop.

“He should have stayed in school,” another West executive said. “No doubt about it.”

The Lakers are going to have to be patient with his development and he is likely to spend most of this upcoming season in the G-League. He is still a fairly raw NBA prospect so he will need space to grow his game to be able to effectively play in the NBA.

Los Angeles sees him as part of their rotation down the line but he must first form his game out more. If they can be patient, Bronny has the makings of an impactful role player in the league.

However, the hardest part will be blocking out all of the noise that will come his way. But to his credit, he has done a great job of handling everything so far.

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