The Los Angeles Lakers selected Bronny James with the No. 55 pick in the 2024 Draft, which means LeBron James and his first-born child are now the only father-son duo to ever play in the NBA.
That is to say, since Bronny was a late-second round pick, that gave many other teams an opportunity to pick James Jr. And in particular, the Warriors seriously considered taking him at No. 52 (per ESPN's Ramona Shelburne).
"The Golden State Warriors, who had tried to trade for James last season, weighed whether to take Bronny at No. 52. The Warriors liked Bronny's skill set and had him on their draft board, sources said. Selecting him ahead of the Lakers, who held the 55th pick, would've been a shrewd move — perhaps even to entice James to sign there as a free agent. But ultimately, sources said, the Warriors opted to respect the wishes James had made clear and the Lakers signaled they would grant," Shelburne said.
To point out, during the draft, LeBron/Bronny's agent Rich Paul put out a league-wide message to all 30 NBA team owners and GM's, that if anyone selected his client he threatened James Jr. would play in the NBL (Australian basketball league).
Near the middle of the second round, NBA analyst Bob Myers said on ESPN, "Rich Paul's calling teams and saying, 'Don't take Bronny James.'"
All in all it worked out, as LeBron, who is entering into his 22nd season in the league, said on more than one occasion that this was a lifelong dream to share the court with his son, and now it has become a reality.
"There's a lot of excitement. It's pure joy," LeBron said at Lakers media day, while sitting next to his son. "To be honest, to be able to come to work every day, put in the hard work with your son every day and be able to see him continue to grow."
