Los Angeles Lakers rookie Bronny James hit his strides in the G League while his father, LeBron James, was away from him and the team.
Bronny stepped out of his father’s larger-than-life shadow when he dropped a career-high 30 points on December 12 in the South Bay Lakers’ heartbreaking 106-100 loss to the Western Conference leader Valley Suns in Phoenix.
He followed it up with a 16-point effort the following night against the same team in a 102-91 loss.
LeBron told reporters after his return from an eight-day break that he watched both Bronny’s games remotely. He sent a message to his eldest son afterward.
“Just keep stacking the days,” LeBron told reporters when asked to comment about Bronny’s game after the Lakers’ 116-110 win over the Memphis Grizzlies on December 15. “Keep putting in the work. The work always prevails at the end of the day.
“It’s just great to see him getting back into the flow, getting back to his game, getting
back to him just playing free and going out and just playing the game he loves and knows how to play.”
LeBron Loves Bronny’s Aggressiveness
What stood out in both breakout games for Bronny in the G League was his scoring exploits. He attempted 43 shots in his last two games and made 19 of them.
“I love his aggressiveness,” James told reporters. “He was aggressive from the beginning in both games all the way up until the end. So he did it in short minutes on both sides of the floor.”
Bronny has now scored in double digits over his last three G League games after a slow start. In his last three G League games, Bronny averaged 20.6 points, 3.0 rebounds and 2.0 rebounds in 24.3 minutes.
But while he’s making waves individually, LeBron said he believes Bronny would have preferred South Bay won both games than his career game.
“I’m not sure [how Bronny reacted after those games],” James told reporters. “I wasn’t with him, but I know he would like to have those wins more importantly, but I think him playing the way he played out, he should be proud of himself as he should be.”
‘I Just Want to Play’
With Bronny not part of the Lakers’ rotation, he’s getting the playing time he desires in the G League to keep developing his game after the former McDonald’s All-American momentarily stopped playing basketball last year due to cardiac arrest at USC.
Following a tentative start to his G League career, Bronny has found his footing over his last three games.
“It feels good to be here with my guys,” Bronny told reporters after his career game. “I just want to play, that’s the main thing. So I just came out here with the G and got some work done, and I just want to play.”
Through five G League games, Bronny is now averaging 14.4 points, 2.8 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.0 steals in 26.1 minutes.
The Lakers have yet to decide whether they will let Bronny James play with the South Bay Lakers in the G League Winter Showcase in Orlando later this week, according to NBA insider Marc Stein.
“Sources: The Lakers are still determining whether Bronny James will play for the South Bay Lakers at next week’s G League Showcase in Orlando. LA’s day-to-day health picture will be a prime factor. James just had 30 points for South Bay in Phoenix,” Stein wrote in a post on X on Friday, December 14.
The Lakers have two back-to-back road games against the Sacramento Kings on December 19 and 21 while the G League Showcase is ongoing.
