"He could be successful in the NBA and still be a failure to people”: Dan Patrick points out harsh truth on Bronny James’ career

Bronny James has been the center of attention as he prepared for the 2024 NBA draft. Despite a poor performance in college with the USC Trojans, James surprised many people during the draft combine in Chicago earlier this month as he put up good numbers. ESPN predicts the elder James brother will be a No. 54 pick.

There have been many debates about the legitimacy of Bronny in the draft, questioning if his father, LeBron James, is a big motivator for teams to pick him. Dan Patrick gave his two cents on his podcast, "The Dan Patrick Show."

"He could be successful in the NBA and still be a failure to people," Patrick said. (Timestamp:3:00.) "He's getting attention because of his name. If he averages, let's say, 10 points a game, that'd be a failure. Let's say, he played for 10 years. That would be a failure to people.

"But also he's getting attention because (of) his name. If his name was Bronny Smith, no one would care, but it's Bronny James. He got to have an inordinate amount of pressure on him when he gets to the NBA because we're going to go, OK, what do you got? Let me see what you got when you're playing against the pros.

"If you couldn't play well at a high level in the Pac-12, now you're going to go to the NBA. There's going to be a bright spotlight on him."

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Bronny James' agent announces that the guard will stay in the NBA draft

Wednesday marked the deadline for draft prospects to forgo their college eligibility or withdraw from the draft. Bronny James' agent Rich Paul informed ESPN that the guard intends to stay.

"Bronny's (draft) range is wide," Paul said. "He's a really good prospect who has a lot of room for growth. It only takes one team. I don't care where that team is – it can be No. 1 or 58 – (but) I do care about the plan, the development, the team's strategy, the opportunity and the financial commitment.

"That's why I'm not doing a two-way deal (playing for a G League team). Every team understands that."

Bronny James has accepted workout invitations from two teams: the Phoenix Suns and the LA Lakers. Fans now assume that the guard will be joining with either one of these teams. The Suns have the No. 22 pick while the Lakers own a second-round pick.

What do you think are Bronny James' prospects in the NBA? Let us know in the comment section below.

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