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Arizona is one of the four teams left standing in the NCAA Tournament, and Bryce James has literally had a front-row seat for their run during his first season with the Wildcats. LeBron’s second-oldest son hasn’t seen any playing time, so while he might not be a high priority for reporters covering the Final Four, they couldn’t talk to him even if they wanted to due to an “enforcer” who’s been tasked with keeping them at bay.
In 2024, LeBron and Bronny James made history as the first father-son duo to play together in an NBA game. It was a cool moment that was somewhat tainted by the unignorable stench of nepotism that radiated from it, as it was very hard to imagine the latter would have been drafted by the Lakers (never mind gotten to play for them) if not for his familial ties to one of the best basketball players of all time.
Bronny had a wholly unremarkable college career during the one and only season he played at USC, and only time will tell how his brother Bryce will end up faring at that level. LeBron’s youngest son is currently a member of the men’s basketball team at Arizona, but he’s watched their run to the Final Four from the bench as a redshirt freshman.
He might be able to provide some insight into the team’s impressive season, but it’s apparently pretty hard to land a quote from him based on how he’s being managed in Indianapolis.
Reporters are being blocked from talking to Bryce James at the Final Four thanks to an “enforcer” running interference for LeBron’s son
Bryce spent time with three different teams during a high school career that he started and ended at Sierra Canyon (Bronny’s alma mater), and the 6’5″ guard was a three-star recruit who weighed offers from Ohio State and Duquesne before deciding to take his talent to Arizona.
He enrolled as a freshman ahead of the current season and decided to redshirt after it became evident any playing time he’d see would be few and far between, and the Wildcats have been more than fine without him during a campaign where they’ve posted a 36-2 record while advancing to the Final Four as a one-seed.
Arizona will face off against Michigan on Saturday for the right to play either UConn or Illinois for a national championship, and James will be a non-factor in that contest aside from the moral support he’ll be able to offer from the bench.
It’s still possible to gain some insight from backups, but according to Dan Wolken of Yahoo Sports, reporters who were hoping to chat with him on Thursday were prevented from doing so thanks to an “enforcer” who was tasked with blocking them from talking to him in the locker room.
Arizona had an enforcer in the locker room today near Bryce James to tell reporters that he wasn’t going to do interviews.
— Dan Wolken (@DanWolken) April 2, 2026
Wolken noted the unidentified bouncer was not affiliated with Arizona while asserting they’d been dispatched by either Klutch Sports or LeBron himself. At the end of the day, people covering the tournament probably aren’t missing out on any major scoops by not being able to chat with Bryce, but that approach seems a bit extra.