Bryce James, the youngest son of NBA superstar LeBron James, made headlines when he announced his transfer to Notre Dame High School in Sherman Oaks, California, back in August. The 16-year-old junior had previously played for Sierra Canyon High School and Campbell Hall High School, both in Los Angeles County. Many fans and analysts were curious to see how he would perform at his new school, where he would join forces with four-star recruit Mercy Miller, the son of rapper Master P.
Is Bryce James on the Junior Varsity Team for Notre Dame High School?
However, some recent footage from Bryce James’ first two games with Notre Dame raised some questions about his status on the team. The videos, which were posted on YouTube, showed James playing against opponents who looked much smaller and less skilled than him.
He also did not share the court with Miller, who is considered one of the top prospects in the class of 2024. This led many viewers to wonder if Bryce James was demoted to playing on the junior varsity (JV) basketball team at Notre Dame, after being a varsity player at his previous schools.
To find out the truth, I decided to do some research and visit the official website of Notre Dame High School’s basketball program, but noticed their roster wasn’t listed. Next I went to the MaxPreps official roster page for their varsity basketball team.
There, I was able to confirm that it appears Bryce James is not on the current varsity roster listed on the page. The varsity team, which is coached by Matt Sargeant, features 15 players, including Mercy Miller, Jayden Harper, and Dusty Stromer. Bryce James’ name was nowhere to be found.
However, I also noticed that the MaxPrep page does not show the JV team’s roster, similar to the school’s page dedicated to their junior varsity team. It is not clear if this is a common practice for Notre Dame, or if they are hiding the roster names to avoid revealing that Bryce James was downgraded to the JV team.
Take a look at the footage that left many people pondering, if he was no longer a varsity level basketball player on paper.
Bryce James Dropped Out the Top 100 High School Basketball Players in the Nation Recently
If James is indeed playing on the JV team for Notre Dame, it might have been the only way for him to get more playing time, which could be beneficial for his development in the long run. James has not been able to live up to the hype that surrounds him as LeBron’s son, and has seen his ranking drop significantly in recent months.
According to 247Sports, he is no longer in the top 100 for his draft class. Despite his drastic drop in rankings, the good thing is he is only 16 years old. The bad thing is he is also a junior, so his time left high school is dwindling down fast.
Playing on the JV team could help him regain his confidence, and improve his skills against weaker competition. Think of how NBA players like Jordan Poole were demoted to the G-league, then came back stronger when they get their shot in the NBA again.
This could be Bryce’s G-league moment albeit in high school, or he might have been playing with the JV team, because it was a preseason game. When the real season starts, Bryce James might be on the court with the varsity squad.