Rachel Nichols weighs in on LeBron James' son Bronny James' wish to prove his worth: "Your thing is to separate from your parents"
Former USC Trojans prospect Bronny James had one of the most impressive performances in the NBA draft combine despite a difficult college basketball season. His father, LeBron James, attended the final scrimmage to watch him play.
Bronny has been under the spotlight for years due to his famous father, who is the NBA's points-scoring leader and is considered one of the greatest ever NBA players, increasing the pressure on the prospect.
During an episode of "Undisputed," popular analyst Rachel Nichols spoke about Bronny's wish to stand on his own and not only be known as his father's son.
"I admire it, I mean, he wants to be his own person," Nichols said. "I've known Bronny since he was a baby, I mean, it's kind of surreal to watch him be at this stage right now and to think that there's even a possibility of him playing with his dad. I get it, man. Your thing is to separate from your parents.
"He wants to be his own guy, it's important to him, I get all of that and I think it's the right attitude."
Bronny James speaks out on his NBA future with his father
NBA superstar LeBron James turned the spotlight firmly onto his son, Bronny James, two years ago when he declared his retirement wish to play with his then-high-school son.
Since then, the permutations of such a move have been debated over and over between fans, players and analysts alike, with the general consensus being that LeBron James, who wields enormous influence, will make the move happen.
While speaking to reporters during the draft combine, Bronny James finally spoke about the prospect of playing with his father in the NBA.
"I would be happy about getting to the league instead of me thinking about playing with my dad. That's not my mindset at all," Bronny James said. “My dream has always just been to put my name out, make a name for myself and, of course, get to the NBA. I never thought about playing with my dad. But of course, he’s brought it up a couple times.”
Bronny James hedged his bets by entering the transfer portal from the USC Trojans and declaring for the NBA draft. He maintained his eligibility and, depending on how the draft combine pans out, could go back to college basketball.
After the first day of the combine, an NBA executive revealed to Yahoo Sports what the insiders in the industry think of Bronny's professional future.
“I think he’ll probably stay in this draft,” the NBA executive said. “Should he go back for another year? Probably, but teams will take a serious look at him this year if he decides to stay in this draft class.”
Should Bronny James remain in the NBA draft instead of going back to college basketball for an extra year, his NBA future will be one of the most widely scrutinized picks of all time.