NBA Scout Says Bronny James Reminds Him Of Austin Rivers

An NBA scout told Michael Scotto of HoopsHype that Bronny James reminds him of Austin Rivers. 

“I think Bronny will go in the draft because of who he is, and some team will really think LeBron will come if they draft him,” an NBA scout told HoopsHype. “If the Lakers keep their pick, they won’t pass on him. He’s a decent player. He’s better than some guys who may get picked ahead of him. He’s solid, not spectacular. He knows how to play. He can handle the ball well enough. If you leave him alone, he’ll drill a three. He reminds me of Austin Rivers as a player, and he’s stayed in the league for over a decade.” 

Bronny, the son of LeBron James, averaged 4.8 points, 2.8 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 0.8 steals and 0.2 blocks for USC this season while shooting 36.6% from the field, 26.7% from beyond the arc and 67.6% from the free-throw line. 

According to NBA insider Marc Stein, the Dallas Mavericks are interested in drafting Bronny. However, the Mavericks realize it’s doubtful that Bronny will still be available once they are on the clock. 

“The Mavericks would have interest in selecting Bronny James with the 58th overall pick in the upcoming NBA Draft, league sources say,” Stein wrote. “But the Mavericks also realize it’s extremely unlikely that James will still be available for selection.”

Bronny performed well in the second scrimmage in Chicago at the NBA Draft Combine. He finished with 13 points in 23 minutes while shooting 4-of-10 from beyond the arc.

Bronny also crushed the 3-point star shooting drill at the NBA Draft combine, going 19/25 from deep. 

LeBron, who turns 40 next season, said on his podcast with JJ Redick that he’s “super proud” of how Bronny has handled “scrutiny” at such a young age. 

Bronny is only 19 years old. 

“I wouldn’t be able to handle the scrutiny and all the things that he got going on at his age, at his level, with social media,” LeBron said. “Like I didn’t have social media to deal with when I came in at 18. I did have a lot of scrutiny. I did have a lot of things that was put on my shoulders, but I didn’t have every single day, around-the-clock news coverage, sports shows, things talking about this particular person every single day.

“Or you go online or on social media and X and Instagram and everyone can comment, every single day, about whatever they wanna say. I didn’t have to deal with that. And to see him handle it with such class and just like self-awareness and just staying even-keeled is just a remarkable thing man. And super proud of him.”