“LeBron James was better than current NBA players”: Bronny James’ mock draft snub triggers blunt father-son comparison from Shannon Sharpe
LeBron James seems to disagree with ESPN's latest analysis of his kid's future. ESPN recently dropped Bronny James from their 2024 mock draft and projected him to be drafted in 2025. Here's what Lebron had to say about the news in a tweet that is now deleted:
"Can y'all please just let the kid be a kid and enjoy college basketball, the work and the results will ultimately do the talking no matter what he decides to do. If y'all don't know he doesn't care what a mat a mock draft says.
"He just works around, I give it AFN central data report it and to all the other kids out there striving to be great. Just keep your head down blinders on and keep grinding these mock drafts doesn't matter one bit. I promise you. Only the work matters. Let's talk real basketball people"
Shannon Sharpe and Chad Ochocinco reacted to LeBron's comments on their podcast, Night Cap.
"That LeBron ever High School senior was as good as some players in the NBA. And you would have been absolutely right, right," Sharpe said.
"But there was no there was a definitive definitive that LeBron James was better than some current NBA players. When he was a senior in high school... Yeah, but because Bronny doesn't possess his dad's athleticism or size is different."
Much speculation has been made about whether LeBron will look to change teams for whoever drafts Bronny James. This would allow him to see out the twilight of his career alongside his son, in an arrangement reminiscent of Ken Griffey Jr. and his father with the Seattle Mariners.
Bronny James 2023–24 stats: Not NBA caliber yet
Bronny James averages 5.5 points, 2.5 assists, and 2.8 rebounds per game this season. His field goal percentage stands at 37.1%. He does not rank among the top 150 players in the country in any category.
Most experts feel Bronny's development would benefit from staying at the NCAA level for another year or two.
Let's not forget that his pre-season started with him going through a scary moment when he suffered a cardiac arrest incident in July. That prevented him from fully participating with the USC Trojans squad until December.