USC Basketball: Close Friend Shareef O’Neal Shares Positive Update on Bronny James

On the morning of July 24th, Bronny James' basketball trajectory, which had been on a steady rise for years, encountered its first major roadblock.

The 6'3" freshman combo guard out of Sierra Canyon School in Chatsworth collapsed after suffering a cardiac arrest and was transported to the ICU of Cedars-Sinai Hospital. He and his father, Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James, recently traveled to Rochester, Minnesota's Mayo Clinic for further health testing.

Bronny's friend Shareef O'Neal, a G League Ignite power forward/center and the son of four-time NBA champion center Shaquille O'Neal, chatted with TMZ Sports with a mild and somewhat optimistic update on the state of the 18-year-old first-year guard.

"He's good," O'Neal commented. "I don't think it'll affect anything [with regards to Bronny's long-term hoops outlook]."

The 6'10" O'Neal, who split his NCAA eligibility between the UCLA Bruins and his dad's alma matter, the LSU Tigers, is set to embark on his second NBAGL season, with the hopes of an eventual call-up to the NBA.

Bronny had been projected as a possible mid-to-late first round prospect for next summer's NBA draft prior to the heart incident. As we await word on his short- and long-term hoops outlooks, we can only hope that he is able to live out his basketball dreams with the Cardinal and Gold.