Lakers No Longer Frontrunners To Land LeBron James, Bronny

The Los Angeles Lakers have widely been viewed as the frontrunners to select Bronny in the 2024 NBA Draft.

By the same token, the expectation has been that they will re-sign LeBron James for what will likely be the rest of his active career as an NBA player.

This week – a new team seemed to enter the equation.

Now the Lakers are no longer the frontrunners.

According to NBA insider Bill Simmons, the Phoenix Suns are a team to watch when it comes to LeBron and Bronny.

“There’s a lot of Phoenix buzz right now; I’m just going to say it,” Simmons noted.

“And I don’t know if it’s real or not. I think Bronny is going to go in the first round because I think… I think that’s going to be encouraged.”

It is worth remembering – Simmons was one of the first prominent sports media personalities to call out that Bronny was going to USC. At the time, everyone thought he was Ohio State-bound.

Because of that, it is impossible to dismiss that the Suns might be the new frontrunners to land both LeBron and Bronny.

This week reports surfaced that NBA teams have been struggling to actually get Bronny to work out for them.

“NBA teams that I talk to say they cannot get Bronny James into their building,” ESPN’s Jonathan Givony reported.

“Teams that are drafting in the late 20s and 30s. The Phoenix Suns have a second workout scheduled with Bronny later this week, but other than that, we have not seen any NBA team be able to work him out.

“The sense among teams is that his agent, Rich Paul, does not want him on a two-way contract, and the range he’s going to be picked—the 40-58 range—that’s where two-way contracts are handed out.”

NBA teams have been struggling to get Bronny James into their buildings, per @DraftExpress

(h/t @ohnohedidnt24 )

pic.twitter.com/2wa0gwQ8tJ

— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) June 18, 2024

It is notable that Phoenix has been able to get Bronny in the building.

Where there is smoke there is usually fire.

It is very possible that LeBron is looking at the Lakers right now, realizing that the team is very far away from competition for a title, and understanding that the Suns are much closer.

With that in mind, would it really be all that shocking to see him pivot to Phoenix and comPete for a championship with Bronny on the same roster?

One way or another, the next few weeks promise to be very interesting for all parties involved.

Carlos Garcia

A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.