USC guard Bronny James has been medically cleared by the NBA's Fitness to Play Panel. That means James is fully cleared to participate in the 2024 NBA Draft process.

Last summer, James went into cardiac arrest. It was discovered he had a congenital heart defect and he had surgery to repair to it. James then spent several months recovering before making his collegiate debut on December 10.

The 6-foot-4 guard then played 25 games for the Trojans in his freshman season. James averaged 4.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 19.4 minutes per game.

After being medically cleared, James is expected to stay in the draft. He has until May 29 to withdraw from the draft and to return to play college basketball.

The Houston Rockets had some luck in the 2024 NBA Draft Lottery. The Rockets, who got their pick from the Brooklyn Nets in the James Harden trade in 2021, moved from the ninth overall pick to the third overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft.

Now, Houston GM Rafael Stone is expected to shop the third pick in trade talks to bring in a veteran player. The Rockets signed several veteran free agents in the 2023 offseason. Those players helped Houston improve from 22 wins in 2022-23 to 41 wins in 2023-24.

In addition to adding the vets, the Rockets still have a good young core. That has Houston looking at options for more win-now help, as opposed to adding another young player to the core of Alperen Sengun, Jalen Green, Jabari Smith II, Amen Thompson and Tari Eason.

The NBA held its 2024 draft lottery in Chicago on Sunday with the Atlanta Hawks winning the top overall pick. The Hawks entered the lottery with just a three percent chance of securing the top pick.

After a handful of clerical errors were corrected, over 200 players declared as Early Entry Candidates for the 2024 NBA Draft. Six additional players were added to the list, including potential draftees Walter Clayton Jr. (Florida), Caleb Love (Arizona), Ugonna Onyenso (Kentucky) and Hunter Sallis (Wake Forest).

You can find the full list of 2024 Early Entry Candidates here.

Of the previously announced players, there were no real surprises. All of the players (both college and international) that have featured as lottery picks in mock drafts, declared as Early Entry Candidates.

NCAA players have until Wednesday, May 29 to withdraw from the draft while maintaining NCAA eligibility. The NBA's withdrawal deadline for all other players is Sunday, June 16.

The 2024 NBA Draft will be held over two nights for the first time. The first round will be Wednesday, June 26. The second round will be Thursday, June 27.

There's been a lot made about LeBron James desire to play with his son Bronny in the NBA. The elder James once said that was a goal of his before his career ends. Now, it seems like both father and son, and their representatives, are focused on each having success independently.

ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported that after conversations with Rich Paul, he no longer believes that LeBron James is insisting he has to play with Bronny.

"The idea of them playing together is not a priority, it's not foremost, at least any longer, in LeBron James' mind," Wojnarowski reported.

That seems to indicate that LeBron James and his agent Rich Paul will do what's best for him without forcing a team to draft his son in the 2024 NBA Draft.

As for Bronny James, the priority is to get him in the best situation for his own development.

"Rich Paul's goal here in the pre-draft process for Bronny James is to see if there's the right developmental system or organization, a place that can take a young player like Bronny James, who went five months without playing after his heart episode certainly limited him in his season at USC," Wojnarowski said. "If he does go in the draft, he very likely would spend next year in the G League."