Warriors considered drafting Bronny James ahead of Lakers

ESPN reports that the Warriors liked Bronny James, but passed on the USC player to respect his wishes

The Golden State Warriors inquired about trading for LeBron James last season. But when they had a chance to select LeBron James, Jr. in June, they passed.

According to a report by Ramona Shelburne, they Warriors “liked Bronny’s skill set and had him on their draft board,” as the No. 52 picks in the draft approached. But with the Lakers picking at No. 55, Shelburne reports the Warriors chose to “respect the wishes James had made clear” and opted for Boston College center Quinten Post instead.

They could have been respecting wishes, or they could have been cowed by threats from Rich Paul, the agent for both the elder and younger James. Former Warriors general manager Bob Myers reported that Paul told NBA executives that if anyone but the Lakers drafted Bronny, he’d refuse to sign and play in Australia instead. That’s like saying you “respected the wishes” of the mugger who demanded your wallet at gunpoint.

Not that Bronny James seems like an ideal fit for the Warriors, who already have a few undersized guards on their roster. While James is a good athlete, measuring a 40.5-inch vertical leap at the draft combine, he’s only 6-foot-1. He’s more of a developmental project than a player who is ready to step in and contribute right away. Plus, the Warriors don’t have space for another NBA contract on their roster, and Bronny had too much leverage to take a two-way deal.

Steering players to a specific team isn’t unique to James. No. 2 pick Alex Sarr essentially forced his way to the Washington Wizards by refusing to work out for the Atlanta Hawks, who held the top pick. Tyrese Haliburton did a similar move, which is how he fell to the Sacramento Kings at No. 12 in the 2020 draft.

You could argue that the move may hurt the Lakers this season, as they’re devoting a roster spot and guaranteed NBA deal to an almost-20-year-old who averaged 4.8 points per game in his lone college season. It’s not likely that drafting Bronny would have made his father force a trade to Golden State, a deal that would have been a logistical nightmare. Plus, he didn’t want to come to the Warriors four months earlier.

This story smacks of LeBron-centric ESPN reporting. It’s rarely newsworthy that a team allegedly considered drafting a player late in the second rounf. But it doesn’t hurt to compliment one of the league’s most popular players by implying that plenty of teams wanted his son on their teams, too.

For the record, the earliest that six-year-old Canon Curry can be drafted is in 2037, when it’s unlikely his father will still be playing, at age 52. But if Steph is still putting up threes as the Wrinkle-Faced Assassin, we’re sure the Lakers will respect Canon’s wishes and let the Warriors draft him.