NBA skills coach Chris Brickley weighs in on the Lakers' Bronny James

Coach Chris Brinkley trains with LeBron James and his sons Bryce and Bronny (right).

The NBA Draft took place as a two-day event for the first time in June. For thirty young men, their lifelong dreams came true when Commissioner Adam Silver called their names on the first day. None of these players was Bronny James.

Bronny didn't sulk, which is an example of the mental toughness of the eldest son of the NBA's all-time leading scorer. Instead, he woke up early the next morning and accompanied his father, LeBron, to a New York gym to train with well-known trainer Chris Brickley.

“Not being drafted on the first night is a tough pill to swallow,” Brickley said. “LeBron had a practice scheduled the next day, but I was wondering if Bronny would come too.

“So it’s 9 a.m. and they both come in. Bronny had one of his best workouts. The whole world says, “Oh, you didn’t get drafted on day one,” and he comes to work ready. They had a good 90-minute training session and that was a sign that he is mature and ready for whatever is thrown his way.”

Bronny was drafted on the second day by the Los Angeles Lakers and made his preseason debut on October 4th. He scored two points, blocked three shots, had one rebound and one assist in 16 minutes. On his 20th birthday, Bronny made history by joining LeBron as the first father and son to attend an NBA preseason game together when the Lakers lost to the Suns.

Bronny has been the talk of barbershops across the country since it was designed. While everyone is entitled to their opinion, let's hear from an expert on this topic.

“He had a heart problem right before his season at USC,” Brickley said. “So it’s no joke to deal with this before your first college season. Some of the criticism he has received is unfair. You can’t just look at his stats and say, Oh, he didn’t have a great season.”

Bronny suffered a cardiac arrest during a training session the summer before his freshman season. He underwent a procedure to treat a congenital heart defect and was cleared by doctors to return to basketball just over four months later.

In his only season at USC (25 games), he averaged 4.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.1 assists while playing just under 20 minutes per game.

During their five training sessions, Brickley not only noticed that Bronny was a better shooter than he was given credit for, but his athleticism skyrocketed.

“I posted a picture the other day where his eyes were at the edge,” Brickley said. “That wasn't at the end of practice when the guys were just goofing around and dunking – that was within practice.

“He made a cut, caught the ball at full speed and sank it at eye level with the rim. His technique is very good, he has good form and his athleticism is different. He’s going to be better than people think.”

Brickley was recently named Peloton's global ambassador and will, among other things, collaborate with Peloton on social media content.

“I’m happy about it,” Brickley said. “It's a great opportunity. Having trained elite basketball players for years, I know how important fitness is on and off the court. I’m a big fan of Peloton’s equipment, especially the Peloton Tread+, and I’ve enjoyed discovering all the great workouts in the app when I’m on the go.”