"Ransom for Lakers" — Paul Pierce makes bizarre case for Eastern Conference team to draft LeBron James' son Bronny James

Former NBA player Paul Pierce made a unique case as to why the Boston Celtics should select Bronny James in the 2024 NBA draft. James is one of the more unique players in the draft as he is the son of NBA legend LeBron James, but he didn't have much success at the college level.

Heading into the draft, many expect the Lakers to select James with their second-round pick at 55th overall. However, Pierce says the Celtics should select James to screw over the Lakers.

"If the Lakers don't draft him at 17, they better hope the Celtics don't get him at 30... Think about Bronny on the Celtics he gets the tutelage of Jrue Holliday for the next three years. Bronny could kind of turn into that maybe, a guy that's high-IQ and an elite defender, about the same size...I mean, that might not be a bad thing. You know? To be behind Derrick White and Jrue Holiday," Pierce said on Undisputed.

"And you know, we always try to find a way to troll the Lakers... Because, you know, everybody wants him to go there. How ironic would it be for the Celtics to pick him. We'll hold him for ransom for a Laker trade," Pierce added.

Having the Celtics draft Bronny James would be interesting. But the reports suggest that the Phoenix Suns or Los Angeles Lakers will likely pick James.

Many people also speculated the reason for drafting Bronny James was to lure LeBron in free agency. But the NBA superstar has since confirmed that he won't be signing in free agency with whatever team drafted Bronny.

Where is Bronny James projected to be picked?

Bronny James declared for the draft after his freshman season

Bronny James is projected to be a second-round pick in the 2024 NBA draft.

In Yahoo Sports' latest mock draft, they have James going 55th overall to the Lakers, as does Bleacher Report and The Ringer.

However, the Suns and Raptors are also reportedly interested in the former USC Trojan.

In his freshman season at USC, James averaged 4.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.1 assists.