"Bronny James is very ready for the NBA": Skip Bayless raves about $4.9M NIL-valued USC guard despite freshman season struggles
Bronny James hasn't had a noteworthy freshman season in college basketball. The point guard struggled for the USC Trojans, averaging 4.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game. Nonetheless, there are rumors around the possibility of him transitioning to the NBA.
While many don't believe he has the talent to play in the league like his father, LeBron James, following his abysmal freshman season, sports personality Skip Bayless thinks otherwise. The veteran analyst contends that Bronny James, who has an On3 NIL valuation of $4.9 million, is ready for the NBA in a recent installment of his show “Undisputed.”
"I'm going to make a statement that I'll never again make and I've never made before," Bayless said. "For a freshman who averaged, let's just round up, five (points), three (rebounds) and two (assists) in one year of college basketball, I think he is very ready for the NBA because that's what he was born to do."
Bronny James has LeBron James’ IQ
This is a controversial take, and not many will agree with it. However, Skip Bayless believes Bronny James has the intelligence of his father despite his flaws. According to him, this is because LeBron James, arguably the greatest player of all time, taught him how to play the game.
“He is not a great scorer, what he does is he's a basketball player," Bayless said. "He knows how to play basketball because he was taught by one of the greatest ever … and one of the smartest if not the highest basketball IQs ever. It's father teaching son and son got that IQ.”
It doesn't look like Bronny has shown any glimpse of being LeBron-esque this season with USC. However, Bayless made his opinion by looking at the point guard’s career from his high school days.
More suited for the NBA than college basketball
This is a very rare take and Skip Bayless also agrees with that. The veteran analyst believes Bronny James is more suited for the NBA than college basketball. He cited playing alongside his father as a big boost for the point guard.
“I like his stature, I like his will, I like his IQ and he is the aberration here," Bayless said. "He's one in a billion who is more suited to me to play pro basketball, especially alongside his father, than he is for college basketball.”
It is a tough argument to conclude a player is more fitted for the more demanding NBA, where only the elite talent makes it. Nonetheless, Bayless wants to prove a point with Bronny and the exceptions around him. It remains to be seen if the point guard will enter the upcoming draft.