Bronny James Makes Final NBA Draft Decision, And It's Not Justified At All

Bronny James will not return to college.

LeBron James' oldest son will stay in the NBA Draft, Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul told ESPN. The former USC guard had also entered the transfer portal to keep his college eligibility open, but that is now off the table. His path forward is to the NBA.

To make matters even more interesting, Paul informed ESPN that Bronny will not sign a two-way contract. That means he'll only agree to a deal that keeps him in the NBA as a rookie.

"Bronny's [draft] range is wide. He's a really good prospect who has a lot of room for growth. It only takes one team. I don't care where that team is -- it can be No. 1 or 58 -- [but] I do care about the plan, the development. The team's strategy, the opportunity and the financial commitment. That's why I'm not doing a two-way deal. Every team understands that," Paul explained.

Translation: Bronny will take up an active spot on an NBA roster whether his talent justifies it or not.

Bronny James will remain in the NBA Draft. (Photo by Jeff Haynes/NBAE via Getty Images)

Bronny James staying in the NBA Draft.

This all boils down to LeBron James using his power to get a team - the Lakers most likely - to draft his son. The Lakers superstar will almost certainly throw around the possibility of going to any team that drafts Bronny, despite the fact the stats don't justify it.

He averaged 4.8 points per game, 2.8 rebounds per game, 2.1 assists per game and shot a horrible 36.6% from the field and 26.7% from three in 25 games for the Trojans.

Is there any precedent for a guy who couldn't score five points a game in the PAC-12 being a high draft pick? If there is, I certainly can't find it online.

The only reason we're even talking about Bronny James is because his dad is arguably the greatest basketball player ever. That's it. The numbers don't back it up at all, and Kendrick Perkins even put the media on blast for pretending he's a top draft prospect.

Will Bronny James get drafted when the draft starts June 26th? The answer is likely yes because of his dad. Will he have earned it after his bad season at USC? The answer is no, and that's the narrative that will likely dominate the start of his NBA career. Let me know your thoughts at David.Hookstead@outkick.com.