Bronny James To Celtics? NBA Draft Experts Opens Door To Possibility

LeBron James has been a rival of the Boston Celtics over the course of his decorated career.

But there’s a path where the illustrious franchise could turn the NBA superstar into a fan of the Celtics.

The 2024 NBA draft is a little over a month away and James’ son, Bronny James, is among the pool of players available to be selected. Unlike his father, James won’t hear his name right away if he decides to stay eligible and forgo returning to college.

James is a project pick after an underwhelming freshman season at USC — the 6-foot-2 guard averaged 4.8 points on 36.6 % shooting from the field and 26.7% from 3-point range. With that in mind, James could make sense for the Celtics late in the second round.

That’s the way ESPN draft experts Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo see it as they had the Celtics taking James with the No. 54 overall pick in their latest mock draft.

The intriguing part to James, who actually compared himself to two Celtics players last week, isn’t necessarily what he can develop into on the floor, but if his father would try to follow him to whatever teams he ends up on. LeBron James, who is 39 years old and has a $51.4 million player option with the Los Angeles Lakers for next season, spoke openly for years about wanting the opportunity to play alongside his son at the NBA level.

Whether that comes to fruition, obviously remains to be seen. But the Celtics could find out if it’s a possibility if they take the chance on drafting Bronny James.

The Celtics also have a first-round pick this year for the first time since 2020 when they selected Aaron Nesmith at No. 14 overall. Givony and Woo have the Celtics drafting Kansas small forward Kevin McCullar late in the first round.

“Late season injuries put a bit of a damper on McCullar’s season, but a strong first month helped reframe his NBA readiness and moved him from two-way contract candidate into what will likely be guaranteed money on draft night,” Woo wrote. “The Celtics are in a contention window and have a need for wing depth behind Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. Grabbing an experienced player on a cheap contract at this spot could be a valuable route for Boston.”