2024 NBA Draft: Lakers’ Rob Pelinka argues picking Bronny James at 55 was unrelated to LeBron James

The various LA Lakers staff members high-fived each other with the kind of fanfare usually reserved for a block-buster trade or for drafting a lottery pick. The Lakers reacted this way after finalizing their No. 55 pick, which sparked more interest and attention than any second-round pick in NBA history.

The Lakers selected USC freshman guard Bronny James, which means that he will play with a certain player named LeBron James, which fulfills three titles. He is one of the NBA’s greatest players ever. He is the Lakers’ star player. And he is Bronny’s dad.

“In the history of the NBA, there has never been a father and a son that have shared an NBA basketball court,”

Said Rob Pelinka, the Lakers’ vice president of basketball operations and general manager.

“That feels like something that could be magical.”

Before he could become further swept away with this made-for-Disney movie, Pelinka stressed something that cuts to heart on why the Lakers ultimately selected Bronny. He maintained both to reporters and Bronny himself that the Lakers didn’t select him because of his father’s influence. Pelinka relayed that he told Bronny on the phone that “this moment was happening mostly because of the work that he’s put into the game and because of the character and young man that he is.”

“We really kept the draft process to Bronny being a Laker and what we felt like we needed to do to help him become great and the core qualities in him that we saw,” Pelinka said. “So we didn't talk a lot about that just because, again, we want to respect his dad's decision as a free agent. So that wasn't really something that came up."

Some may roll their eyes at such an explanation.

Rich Paul, who has served as both an agent for LeBron and Bronny, told ESPN last month that teams shouldn’t draft Bronny out of hope they can convince LeBron to leave with the Lakers and that he won’t accept a veteran’s minimum deal. Bob Myers, the Golden State Warriors former general manager and current ESPN analyst, said on the network’s draft broadcast that Paul told him that he’s informed certain teams that Bronny would play in Australia if those teams drafted him. And LeBron technically could opt out of his player option on Saturday and seek a free-agent destination elsewhere.

Why was there so much skepticism behind drafting Bronny James?

Are we to believe that those factors weren’t in play? The Lakers were this excited for a player that averaged 4.8 points on a 36.6% clip and 2.1 assists in only 19.3 minutes per game through 25 contests through his freshman season at USC?

“He’s not a person that is ever taken shortcuts, or expected or been entitled about basketball opportunities,” Pelinka said. “He’s worked for everything he’s gotten, including being selected today at 55. It’s an honor for us to add him to our program.”

That comment may produce more eyerolls among skeptical NBA fans. But even if James’ presence undoubtedly prompted the Lakers to draft their son, it actually seems plausible that it didn’t serve as a primary driving force. It appears the Lakers made this happen more out of convenience.

The primary evidence? The Lakers used their No. 55 selection on Bronny. They didn’t use their No. 17 on him. They saved that slot for Dalton Knecht, a four-year player who could immediately bolster the Lakers’ shooting needs. They didn’t trade up earlier in the draft to select Bronny. They waited until he was available with the pick they already had.

Pelinka maintained “It really started to become real” that they would select Bronny once they were on the clock. But two executives and one scout projected this outcome to Sportskeeda earlier this month for another reason. Paul’s comments to ESPN aside, the two executives and scouts echoed the league-wide skepticism that another team would draft Bronny before the Lakers had their chance. They expressed various questions about his lack of a defined skill. They also sounded skeptical a team would select Bronny just in case the move could lure LeBron to leave the Lakers.

So what is in it for the Lakers then besides ensuring that LeBron and Bronny get to play together?

The Lakers have become relatively impressed with Bronny that they envision him as a 3-and-D player.

“The road to ultimate victory in the NBA is with two-way players that can be great defenders and can be shot makers on offense,”

Pelinka said. “If you’re able to develop guys like that and surround your superstar players with them, that’s a good recipe for success. Bronny’s of that ilk. I think he’s going to be a point-of-attack defender who can really be disruptive with the way he guards other teams’ point guards. I think he can guard multiple positions. And we’ve really seen growth in shooting.”

The Lakers admired Bronny’s resiliency in overcoming a cardiac arrest that limited both his off-season training and workload during his lone season at USC. Pelinka shared that Lakers coach JJ Redick “is already excited about putting a development plan around him” that many around the league expect will include time in the G League. And Pelinka sensed Bronny seems equipped with handling the attention and scrutiny after dissecting his game footage, having an hour-long lunch with him and observing his workout at the NBA pre-draft combine in Chicago.

“Growing up as he's grown up, there's a fishbowl. There are lots of eyes looking at everything you do. And I think he's been able to handle all that with an extreme maturity,” Pelinka said. “It's evident when you spend time with him that he doesn't let things bother him. He is who he is. He believes in himself. He was raised right by LeBron and Savannah to be very respectful of coaches and, in my case, a general manager. But when he walks in the room, you have his attention because he was taught that. And it's just very genuine. And you can tell right away, this is a fine young man that was raised the right way."

The Lakers will have to show they can develop Bronny the right way. Regardless of their actual motives, the Lakers ensured the NBA’s first father-son duo, a moment that sparked both celebration and scrutiny.

“The biggest moment in sports happen with the Lakers,” Pelinka said. “And that’s how we’re built and we’re excited to see this story unfold.”

Mark Medina is an NBA insider with Sportskeeda. Follow him on X, Instagram, Facebook and Threads.