The Los Angeles Lakers are a franchise that prides itself on history and narrative, and they followed that trend when they selected Bronny James with the 55th pick in the 2024 NBA Draft.
By taking Bronny, the Lakers will become the first team in NBA history to have a father-son duo on its roster. LeBron James and Bronny have distanced themselves from their desire to share the floor as teammates but that will be a reality once the 2024-25 season tips off.
While LeBron has been busy with his commitment to Team USA, Bronny has been playing in Summer League where he’s picked up his play their past two games. The USC product had a rough shooting start to his professional career, but has found his groove on the floor and has gotten support from fellow players like Oklahoma City Thunder big man Chet Holmgren.
Bronny is expected to spend most of the regular season developing behind the scenes with Los Angeles’ G League affiliate the South Bay Lakers, but that has not stopped bettors from placing wagers on him to win the 2024-25 Kia NBA Rookie of the Year award, via David Purdum of ESPN:
“More bets have been placed on Bronny James to win Rookie of the Year (ROY) than any other player at multiple sportsbooks. James has attracted nearly one in four of the bets placed on the ROY market at ESPN BET. BetMGM reported taking a $1,000 ROY bet on James at 250-1 on July 6, from a bettor in Ontario, and DraftKings said that only Edey had attracted more money wagered than James in its ROY market.”
It’s unheard of for a second-round pick taken so late to be attracting this much action on the betting market, but it goes to show how strong the Lakers brand and Bronny’s lineage is. Zach Edey is deserving to be the favorite to win Rookie of the Year given his age, experience and showing in Summer League, though bettors seem to be enticed with the odds and payout if Bronny were to somehow win.
Perhaps this is just a way for bettors and fans to show their support as it’s highly unlikely that Bronny will be in the running. The same was the case leading up to the draft as James received the most bets to be taken No. 1 overall even though that had no chance of actually happening.
Kevin Hart gives advice to Lakers’ Bronny James on handling criticism
Bronny James has been subject to plenty of criticism since being drafted by the Lakers, so celebrities like Kevin Hart were kind enough to offer some advice.
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