Bronny James passed a hurdle in his quest to join his father, LeBron James, in playing in the NBA as the league has medically cleared him after an examination.
According to ESPN, James will be allowed to participate in the upcoming pre-draft combine, a requirement for any college player vying to be drafted into the NBA. The son of future NBA Hall of Famer LeBron James
was examined by three physicians on the NBA’s Fitness to Play Panel. All three unanimously approved that it was safe for Bronny to enter the combine, where teams judge the talent and ability of perspective ballplayers.The pre-draft combine started on Saturday, May 11, and includes players who will participate in 5-on-5 scrimmages.
Bronny will be under scrutiny after having an underwhelming freshman season at the
University of Southern California (USC) after he suffered a cardiac arrest on July 24, 2023. He was taken to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, where it was revealed that a congenital heart defect was the probable cause for the health scare.When Bronny returned to the court to play for the USC Trojans, he averaged only 4.8 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 2.1 assists while playing 19.4 minutes per game. Numbers that critics have agreed may mean that he’s not NBA-ready and should possibly stay in college another year to improve his skills and his numbers.
In February, ESPN dropped him from the 2024 mock draft but placed him in the 2025 mock draft.
But, on April 5, he declared for the NBA draft and entered the transfer portal after completing his freshman season. Bronny has a May 29 deadline to stay in the draft or return to college.
Based on an agreement between the NBA and the National Basketball Players Association, anyone who wants to be in the draft must participate in the combine. Yet, the league has given players the option to not play in the scrimmages.
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