Bronny James is one of the most intriguing prospects in the 2024 NBA draft class, likely because selecting him could increase a team's chances of landing his legendary father, LeBron James, in free agency. That name recognition is driving a staggering amount of bets on the young James in draft markets.
On FanDuel, James has drawn 30% of the tickets to be selected first overall by the Atlanta Hawks, the most of any player at the sportsbook. BetMGM reports that the USC guard has 36.8% of bets, well ahead of Alex Sarr (-300), who has the second most at 14%. James wasn't initially listed in DraftKings' No. 1 overall market, but he found himself in the field Thursday afternoon.
James has consensus odds of 200-1 to be selected with the first pick in the draft, tied with Purdue's Zach Edey for the most time on the board. Those low odds, in addition to the discrepancy in bets to be handled, would seem to indicate that many short-money bettors are taking flight in the wild scene. James projects as a late second-round pick in ESPN's latest mock draft.
FanDuel reported that James has just 6% control to go first overall, while BetMGM put that number at 4.1%, a far cry from Sarr's 65.5% control in the book.
“We're not worried about building up a liability there,” said BetMGM senior trader Halvor Egeland. “They are relatively small bets, nothing more than $100.”
While the odds and most draft experts seem to agree that James taking the No. 1 pick would be ridiculous, there are other betting markets in play for the young player's talents.
DraftKings and BetMGM list LeBron James' current team, the Los Angeles Lakers, as the favorite to select the young James with odds of +180. On DraftKings, the 19-year-old is the leader in both bets (33%) and handles (60%), but BetMGM has LeBron's former team, the Cleveland Cavaliers (10-1), as the leader with a 34.8 %.
