Bronny James' Agent Talks Lakers, Suns Rumors; Wolves, Mavs, Raptors Also Interested | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats, and Rumors
Bronny James' agent, Rich Paul, spoke with ESPN's Jonathan Givony on a host of topics regarding his client, including why he's limited him to workouts with only the Los Angeles Lakers and Phoenix Suns.
"This is nothing new," Paul told Givony.
"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."
However, there's clear interest from others teams outside L.A. and Phoenix, including the Minnesota Timberwolves, Dallas Mavericks and Toronto Raptors, per Paul.
"There are other teams that love Bronny. For example, Minnesota, Dallas, Toronto. If it's not the Lakers, it will be someone else. Minnesota would love to get Bronny in, but I don't know who their owner is going to be. [Mavs GM] Nico Harrison is like an uncle to Bronny. If the Lakers don't take him at 55, Dallas would take him at 58 and give him a guaranteed deal. Masai [Ujiri, Raptors president,] loves him. They could take him without even seeing him at 31. Workouts aren't everything for these teams."
James, the son of Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James, has worked his way up into the NBA draft conversation in the second round. Of note, the latest mock draft from Jonathan Wasserman for Bleacher Report has James going 55th overall to L.A.
Obviously, there's a trend here, but based on the interest that James is getting from other teams, it's not a guarantee that he'll be available.
Of note, Toronto is at No. 31 and Minnesota sits at No. 37. Phoenix has the No. 22 choice, although that may be early for James, considering he's seen as a second-round prospect.
On the flip side, if L.A. doesn't take James, then Dallas could swoop in at No. 58 overall, the final choice of the draft.
This year's draft starts on Wednesday, June 26 with the first round. The second round will occur the following day.