LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers were swept by the Denver Nuggets in the 2023 Western Conference Finals this past Monday, but the 19-time All-Star still had one thing to celebrate: Bronny’s, his 18-year-old son, high school graduation ceremony on Thursday.
Bronny is now an official graduate of Sierra Canyon School, a private, coeducational university-preparatory day school located in Los Angeles, California.
LeBron and his wife, Savannah James, were in attendance. Gloria, Bronny’s grandma, was also spotted at graduation. On Instagram, LeBron posted, “Continue to fly high,” with a crown emoji.
Referring to a few NBA betting sites, LeBron James is not expected to retire this offseason. This is good news for Lakers fans. However, the Philadelphia 76ers are the favorites to trade for the 20-year veteran.
Bronny is the eldest child of LeBron James and is a four-star recruit. During his senior year, the combo guard averaged 14.2 points, 5.2 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 1.8 steals per game, helping lead the Trailblazers to a 23-11 record. He was then selected to play in the McDonald’s All-American Game and Nike Hoop Summit.
In the McDonald’s All-American Game, James scored 15 points, including five three-pointers, in his team’s 109–106 loss. He also finished second in the event’s dunk contest. Of course, in the Nike Hoop Summit, he scored 11 points in his team’s 90-84 win.
LeBron James attended Bronny’s high school graduation ceremony on Thursday at Sierra Canyon School
Furthermore, Bronny ranks No. 26 in the nation, No. 6 as a combo guard, and No. 7 in California, per 247Sports. Director of scouting Adam Finkelstein submitted his scouting report on Bronny to the athletic recruitment website on Apr. 8.
“Bronny James is a strong-bodied combo-guard with a well-rounded game,” Finkelstein said. “As the eldest son of LeBron James, his every move has been under a magnifying glass since before he played his first high school game. To his credit, that has never stopped him from playing the right way.
“In fact, Bronny’s best attribute may be his understanding of how to impact the game without dominating the ball or forcing bad shots. He’s unselfish, a more than willing passer, and engaged defender. The best part of his individual offense is his ability to shoot the ball from long-range.”
On May 6, Bronny announced his commitment to USC. The guard signed his letter of intent last week. The 6-foot-3 standout had received other offers from Ohio State and Memphis. Therefore, James will remain in California to play for the Pac-12 contender.
After a loss in Game 5 last night, the Heat have given the Celtics the life they needed to make a comeback. Miami stunned Boston in the first three games, but the Celtics have responded with two blowout wins in a row. The Heat have a chance to close the series out in Game 6. Stephen A. Smith says the Miami Heat ‘gotta win Game 6 tomorrow night’ or else they will lose Game 7 in Boston.
Miami’s performance on the road last night in Game 5 was far from impressive. That has ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith doubting the Heat’s chance to win on the road. Miami needs to close out the series tomorrow night at home in Game 6. Their chances of stealing Game 7 at the TD Garden are not great.
NBA betting sites have the Heat at (+124) to win Game 6 at home tomorrow night.
.@stephenasmith says the Miami Heat are in danger of being the first team in NBA history to blow a 3-0 lead 😳
“You go to South Beach tomorrow night, and you lose that game and you got to come back to face Jayson Tatum in a Game 7 in Boston? Good luck with that.” pic.twitter.com/thNA0ncx97
Stephen A Smith says the Miami Heat need to close out the series tomorrow at home vs the Celtics
As the #8 seed in the 2023 playoffs, the Miami Heat have had quite the run. They took down the #1-seeded Milwaukee Bucks in five games and Jimmy Butler went off in the first round. He scored 56 points in Game 4 and 42 points in Game 5 to stun the Bucks. That led to head coach Mike Budenholzer being fired by Milwaukee.
After that, the Heat has the New York Knicks in the second round. The Knicks put up a good fight vs the Heat, but they ended up losing in five games. That has us where we are now, the Eastern Conference Finals. Miami took the first three games of this series but has lost Games 4 and 5.
The Heat and Celtics are going to play a pivotal Game 6 tomorrow night with a lot on the line. Miami is one win away from punching their ticket back to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2020. On the other hand, the Celtics are looking to make one of the greatest comebacks in NBA playoff history. No team has ever come back from being down 3-0 in a series and won. Boston needs two more wins in a row to make that happen.
Jimmy Butler scored only 14 points in the Miami Heat’s 110-97 loss to the Boston Celtics in Game 5 of the 2023 Eastern Conference Finals, and the five-time All-NBA member is trying to help his team avoid squandering a 3-0 series lead.
The Celtics cut their series deficit to 3-2 on Thursday night. “The last two games are not who we are,” Butler said. “It just happened to be that way. We stopped playing defense halfway because we didn’t make shots that we want to make. But that’s easily correctable.”
Per a few NBA betting sites, the Miami Heat now have third-shortest odds to win the championship. Sportsbooks are showing better odds for the Denver Nuggets and Celtics.
“We’re always going to stay positive, knowing that we can and we will win this series. We’ll just have to close it out at home.”
— Bally Sports Sun: HEAT (@BallyHEAT) May 26, 2023
“You just have to come out and play harder from the jump,” Jimmy Butler added. “Like I always say, ‘It’s going to be all smiles,’ and we are going to keep it very, very, very consistent, knowing that we are going to win next game.”
In addition to scoring a playoff-low 14 points in Game 5, Butler amassed five rebounds, five assists, and two steals in 34 minutes of action. The six-time All-Star finished 5-of-10 (50%) shooting from the floor and missed both 3-point attempts. Miami never led.
Miami Heat forward Jimmy Butler believes his team can close out the 2023 ECF at home in Game 6 against the Boston Celtics
Boston outscored the Heat 35-20 in the opening quarter. Butler scored just 16 points in Game 3 as well. Game 6 is Saturday at Kaseya Center in Miami, where the Heat will try to become the second No. 8 seed to reach the NBA Finals in the current format, dating back to 1984.
“We’ve just got to play better,” Jimmy Butler mentioned. “Start the game off better, on the starters, make it more difficult for them. They are in a rhythm since the beginning of the game.
“But we are always going to stay positive, knowing that we can and we will win this series. We’ll just have to close it out at home.”
The East Finals continue. Celtics/Heat Game 6.#PhantomCam
Meanwhile, the Celtics improved to 5-5 at home this postseason. Boston’s +51 margin in points from starters was the team’s third largest in the playoffs since starts were tracked in 1970-71.
The Celtics are 4-0 in a single postseason when facing elimination for the first time since winning five straight in 1981-82.
Additionally, the C’s had four 20-point scorers in Game 5, whereas the Heat had zero. It was the third time this postseason Jimmy Butler was held to under 20 points.
Sportsbooks show the Heat as 5.5-point underdogs at home ahead of Game 6 this Saturday. Per ESPN’s Basketball Power Index, Boston has a 70.8% chance of tying the series.
The NBA is always evolving and that means new rules are being implemented and changed. Bleacher Report’s Chris Haynes says the league’s competition committee “is in serious discussion” about changing the challenge rule. Currently, coaches have one challenge to use each game. Their new rule would allow the coach to have a second challenge awarded to them if they get the first challenge correct.
Back in the 2019-20 season, the NBA introduced the coach’s challenge rule on a one-year trial basis. In December 2020 the board of governors made it a full-time rule. Hayes noted that a test run of this new rule could be implemented in the summer league.
If all goes well during summer league play with the new rule, expect it to be a part of the NBA moving forward.
NBA is in serious discussions on awarding teams a second coach’s challenge if the first challenge is successful beginning in 2023-24, per @ChrisBHaynespic.twitter.com/lcEcFC0wqo
The league could implement a new coach’s challenge rule for next season
In the current system, plays eligible for review include a called foul, out-of-bounds calls, goaltending, and basket interference. Coaches only have one challenge per game and that has made the use of them rather conservative. A number of coaches hardly ever use the challenge in the first half.
The proposed rule change would have a massive impact on the strategy of how they are used. Awarding a second challenge if the coach gets the first one right is a great twist to the league. There is no significant risk in a coach’s challenge and that’s why the competition committee is in serious talks.
This rule change is meant to benefit the players and coaches. It will not disrupt the way the game is played at the moment and the new system helps the league as a whole.
