Woj: Lakers' LeBron James Playing with Bronny No Longer 'a Priority' amid NBA Rumors

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James has frequently expressed his desire to play on the same team as his son, USC freshman guard Bronny James.

However, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported on Tuesday's episode of NBA Today (2:30 mark) that conversations with James' agent Rich Paul lead him to believe "that the idea of them playing together is not a priority; it's not foremost, at least any longer, in LeBron James' mind."

Bronny James declared for the 2024 NBA draft while maintaining his college eligibility and entering the transfer portal. His lone season with the Trojans didn't go as planned after he suffered a cardiac arrest during a workout in July. After making a full recovery, he made his collegiate debut in December and played 25 games with six starts while averaging 4.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.1 assists.

Wojnarowski noted that Paul is evaluating if there are teams that would commit to developing the 19-year-old.

"Rich Paul's goal here in the pre-draft process for Bronny James is to see if there's the right developmental system or organization, a place that can take a young player like Bronny James, who went five months without playing after his heart episode certainly limited him in his season at USC," he said. "If he does go in the draft, he very likely would spend next year in the G League."

As for the Lakers, Wojnarowski explained that the team is more likely to trade its first-round pick than use it on James, diminishing the chances of pairing him with his legendary father.

"I think what LeBron James, Bronny James and Rich Paul said was, if organically somehow they ended up together, that would be great," Wojnarowski said. "But you look at the Lakers' draft assets, No. 17, that's a really important pick for the Lakers probably to use in a big trade. You're not gonna use it on Bronny James at 17. And then they have No. 55. He could very well be gone by then."