Bronny James Expected to Make Full Recovery, Return to Basketball Activities Soon

The incoming freshman suffered a cardiac arrest in July.

On Friday night, the James family announced that Bronny James had been diagnosed with a congenital heart defect that was the “probable cause” of his cardiac arrest at a July practice. While James is still receiving treatment, the family released a statement that said James’s doctors are “very confident in Bronny’s full recovery and return to basketball in the very near future.”

According to the Mayo Clinic, where James received one of his evaluations, a congenital heart defect means that James was born with this condition and has been dealing with it his entire life, without even knowing. James will need doctors to monitor his heart for the rest of his life, but so long as he gets proper treatment, he should not have an issue resuming his basketball career.

USC, where James is set to enter his freshman year, is familiar with managing players with heart conditions, as last year the Trojans had a similar situation. Vince Iwuchukwu, then a freshman on the USC basketball team, suffered a cardiac arrest last summer and missed the first part of the season. Iwuchukwu made his USC debut on January 12 and played in 14 games for the Trojans last year.

James is part of a highly-touted 2023 USC recruiting class, which also includes point guard Isaiah Collier, the No. 1 overall recruit in the country.