Will North Carolina, Duke start recruiting Bronny James?

Bronny James is one of the top 2023 basketball prospects in the country, but his college basketball recruitment as gone somewhat under the radar — until now.

Previously, James was thought to be a long shot to play college basketball when other development paths (such as the G-League Ignite program) exist. But that conventional wisdom shifted last week after ESPN’s Paul Biancardi reported that James isn’t likely to go the G-League route

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So far, 5 schools have emerged as programs who are recruiting James: UCLA, USC, Michigan, Ohio State and Oregon.

Duke and North Carolina are glaring omissions from that list. Both programs certainly have the history of developing talent that could be attractive to a prospect like James.

Duke and North Carolina appear to meet another key pre-requisite: being affiliated with Nike or Jordan Brand. Duke, USC, Oregon and Ohio State are all Nike schools while UNC, UCLA and Michigan are with Jordan Brand.

It’s unclear if geography will play a factor in this recruitment. James lives in Los Angeles where his father stars with the Los Angeles Lakers. Being close to home with USC or UCLA could make sense. However, the presence of Oregon, Ohio State and Michigan could mean James is willing to strongly consider options outside of Los Angeles.

James is listed at 6-foot-3, 190 pounds. He’s ranked as the No. 44 overall player in his class, according to 247Sports Composite rankings

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North Carolina’s 2023 class currently only has one player in it: 5-star guard Simeon Wilcher. Duke has 4 commitments in its 2023 class, which ranks No. 1 nationally.

There is no timetable for his commitment.