Bronny James Declaring For NBA Draft; To Remain In Transfer Portal

USC freshman guard Bronny James intends to declare for the 2024 NBA Draft, while remaining in the transfer portal, per Shams Charania of The Athletic.

Basically, this means James will get the chance to work out for teams ahead of the draft, receive feedback, and then likely return to college. Whether that’s USC or some other school remains to be seen — though it appears he is moving on from the Trojans.

He will be maintaining his college eligibility.

USC just hired Brecksville High product Eric Musselman as coach. Musselman, who had been coaching Arkansas, is the son of former NBA coach and GM Bill Musselman. It’s too early to know if the hire will impact James’ decision.

There have been no indications where James will play as a sophomore, though some suspect it could either be Ohio State or Duquesne, which is coming off a run to the NCAA tournament. 

The Dukes have plenty of connections to James’ hometown of Akron, Ohio, as new coach Dru Joyce III was a teammate of LeBron James at Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary High School. Joyce’s father was the coach of those St. V-St. M teams for their final two years and remains at the school today.

Also, Joyce is replacing Keith Dambrot, LeBron’s first high school coach. LeBron sent the entire Dukes team a pair of his signature Nikes before they began play in the NCAA tourney, then offered support on social media, as well as praise for Dambrot, who’s retiring.

But that’s nothing more than speculation at this point.

Bronny James had a somewhat rocky start to his college career after going into cardiac arrest during a workout before the season. He finished with averages of 4.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.1 assists, shooting 36.6 percent from the field in 25 games played. 

The Trojans ended up being one of college basketball’s biggest disappointments, entering the year as a Top 25 team — but then finishing 15-18 and failing to qualify for postseason play. Former coach Andy Enfield left USC for SMU.