USC freshmen men's basketball guard Bronny James has officially been "cleared by his doctors for a full return to basketball," according to a statement from a James family spokesperson obtained and shared by the Athletic's Shams Charania on Thursday (November 30).
James, 19, the son of Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James, has been inactive for the first seven games of his collegiate career after suffering cardiac arrest in July.
“Bronny James is now cleared by his doctors for a full return to basketball. Bronny will have a final evaluation with USC (University of Southern California) staff this week, resume practice next week, and return to games soon after," the statement reads. "The James family would like to express their gratitude to the incredible medical team, the entire USC community, and especially the countless friends, family, and fans for their love and support. Fight On!”
James took warm-up shots with his teammates prior to the Trojans' 81-70 win against Brown on November 19, which marked the first time he was seen in pregame action since undergoing surgery to repair a congenial heart defect in July. The 19-year-old was later spotted supporting his father during the Lakers' win against the Houston Rockets at Crypto.com Arena that same evening.
The elder James, the NBA's all-time leading scorer, said his son was "almost there" in terms of his possible return to action via the Associated Press.
Earlier this month, LeBron confirmed that his son was scheduled to undergo a health checkup and could soon be cleared to make his college basketball.
"Things are going in the right direction with Bronny's progress," LeBron said during his postgame press conference after the Lakers' 108-107 loss to the Miami Heat on November 6 via ABC 7 Los Angeles. "He's done with rehab. Every week, he gets to do more and more and more. We have a big - a big - moment at the end of the month to see how we can continue to go forward.
"If he's cleared, we'll be not too long away from him being back on the floor and back with his teammates and practicing with the notion of being back on the floor and playing in game situations," LeBron added. "Everything's on the up and up."
Bronny was rushed to Cedars Sinai Medical Center's intensive care unit after suffering cardiac arrest during the Trojans' practice at their home arena, Galen Center, in July and discharged days later.
James announced his commitment to USC in an Instagram post shared on May 6.
James rated as a five-star prospect and ranks as the No. 5 combo guard, No. 4 player from the state of California and No. 22 overall prospect, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings for the 2023 national recruiting cycle. The 19-year-old is also the top-earning amateur athlete with an NIL valuation estimated at $6.3 million.
James chose USC over offers from numerous schools including Duke, Kansas, Memphis and Ohio State. LeBron James has publicly expressed his interest in playing with his son before his retirement "if it's possible."
"I also have a goal that, if it's possible -- I don't even know if it's possible -- that if I can play with my son, I would love to do that," James said via ESPN in February. "Is that, like, something that any man shouldn't want that in life? That's like the coolest thing that could possibly happen. That doesn't mean I don't want to be with this franchise."
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