10 Under-the-radar players for Dallas Mavericks to target in 2024 NBA Draft

1. Bronny James (USC)

While it almost seems like a done deal that the Los Angeles Lakers will be selecting Bronny James with the 55th overall pick in the year’s NBA Draft if he falls to them, the Dallas Mavericks would love the opportunity to bring LeBron James’ eldest son to Dallas if he fell to the last pick in the draft.

The rumors of LeBron James coming to the Dallas Mavericks to team up with former teammate Kyrie Irving and superstar Luka Doncic would be running rampant if Bronny James somehow fell to Dallas in the draft, though we must reiterate that seems highly unlikely. Beyond talking about his father, Bronny James is a very interesting prospect.

He suffered cardiac arrest last summer which led to him missing a decent chunk of the season for USC last year, as the 6-foot-2 and 210 pound guard averaged a mere 4.8 points and 2.8 rebounds per game in 25 contests with the Trojans last season. James has an NBA-ready body and showcased an impressive 40.5-inch max vertical at the NBA Combine last month, but his inconsistencies in college beg the question of if he’s ready to play at the highest level or not yet.

James shot the ball poorly at USC, despite looking to have improved as a spot-up shooter at the combine, as the freshman had shooting splits of 36.6/26.7/67.6 in his lone collegiate season. James has the strength, athleticism, and wingspan to be really good defender at the guard position, but he needs to play with a little more consistent tenacity to be considered an elite defender.

He’s a good finisher in transition, but hasn’t shown the comfortability that you’d hope for in terms of being able to run and offense and consistently make plays off-the-dribble in a half-court setting. James shows a lot of promise as a prospect when you take into consideration how elite of a prospect he was in high school, and his circumstances were far from ideal in his freshman season at USC, but he would have a lot to prove to become a consistent part of Dallas’ rotation if the Mavericks selected him in the draft, though the ancillary benefits of drafting him are obvious.

For more on the Dallas Mavericks during the 2024 NBA Draft, stay tuned as we will have you covered.