Lakers legend Michael Cooper defends LeBron and Bronny James against ‘nepotism’ backlash | News, scores, highlights, stats and rumors

Los Angeles Lakers legend Michael Cooper doesn’t believe “nepotism” influenced his former team to select LeBron James’ son, Bronny James, 55th overall in the 2024 NBA draft.

“When you’re that good, people try to find little quirks and tricks about you, but this isn’t about nepotism at all,” Cooper told Brandon “Scoop B” Robinson of Scoop B Radio (2:20 mark). “It’s about drafting a young player that can definitely help the Lakers in the long run, and his name just happens to be James.”

Cooper described the Lakers’ decision to draft Bronny James as “one of the best things that ever happened.”

“LeBron James, his father, has done so much for the game of basketball… now he’s the first player to play with his son, and why wouldn’t he do it in a Lakers uniform?” Cooper asked.

This isn’t the first time Cooper has publicly voiced his support for the franchise’s decision to draft Bronny James.

“I think that was a good draft pick,” Cooper told TMZ Sports the week after the 2024 draft. “Bronny’s a good player, he’s just going to keep getting better and it obviously keeps LeBron in LA to play with his son. Another first for him, because he’s broken so many records. That’s a great opportunity for him to play with his son. The first player to ever do that, I think that’s awesome.”

After winning five titles in 12 seasons with the Lakers between 1978 and 1990, Cooper was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame this year. The Lakers will honor him with a jersey-retiring ceremony on Jan. 13.

It seems unlikely that either Bronny or LeBron James will play that night, as ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported in July that the rookie is expected to play the majority of the 2024-25 season in the G League . However, it appears as though Cooper still expects the younger James to play a significant role for the Lakers going forward.