Bronny James, the son of LeBron James, may be the most popular prospect in the 2024 NBA draft. That being said, 21 years after his dad was selected with the first overall in the 2003 draft, the 6-foot-1 guard, who averaged 4.8 points during his one-and-done season at USC, currently (as of Monday 5/20) has 200-1 Vegas odds to be the No. 1 overall draft pick this year.
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Moreover, in regards to which player will be drafted first, Bronny is currently tied for having the most bets placed on him at 22.5%, according to BetMGM.
While, the consensus choice to be the top pick, according to all of the draft experts, 7-foot-1, Alexandre Sarr from France, has also garnered 22.5% of the submitted bets. That is to say, this might be the more realistic bet, as Sarr currently has odds of -220 at DraftKings and -300 at FanDuel to be taken first overall.
Seemingly, the 22.5% of people that are choosing Bronny at +20000 odds to go No. 1 are placing much smaller bets. As to point out, only 2.4% of all the total money wagered on the first overall pick is on James. With this in mind, these bettors may be hoping that either the Hawks, who have the first pick, will go way off script or that another team will trade up in the draft, with the intention of LeBron and his son being a "package deal."
As LeBron, 39, who is a free agent this offseason, has previously hinted at wanting to play with his 19-year-old son, and presumably that would mean he might be willing to sign a one-year veteran minimum deal to whatever destination his son James Jr. goes to. Not only does this explain the reasoning for all of the bets placed on Bronny, but it also points to why when looking at the most bets placed on which team will draft Bronny, LeBron's current team, Los Angeles Lakers have the most (22.1%), while, LeBron's former team and the hometown of the father and son, Cleveland Cavaliers have the second-most (18.3%).
Although important to point out, recent reports suggests that it is now not a main concern for the James family to play together, at least not as much as before.
LeBron's agent, Rich Paul, told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, "The idea of them playing together is not a priority, it's not foremost, at least any longer, in LeBron James' mind."
Considering all of this, Bronny at the Draft Combine expounded on the pressure of being the son of arguably the best basketball player to walk this earth.
"It's tough, a lot of criticism gets thrown my way," LeBron James Jr. said. "But you know I got to deal with it. They don't know what I've been through. I just try to make the best of my opportunities that's given to me."
