Bronny James is hoping to build himself into a longtime NBA player after being the 55th pick in the 2024 NBA Draft. After playing NBA minutes against the Minnesota Timberwolves and Cleveland Cavaliers, James was sent to develop with the G League’s South Bay Lakers.
Bronny had a rough debut against the Salt Lake City Jazz, putting up six points (2-9 FG), three rebounds, four assists, two steals, one block, and five turnovers. His follow-up performance against the Stockton Kings wasn’t a big improvement, with James putting up four points (2-10 FG), two rebounds, two assists, one block, and one turnover in 20 minutes as South Bay fell to a five-point loss (122-127).
With him averaging 5.0 points (4-19 FG, 0-6 3P), 2.5 rebounds, and 3.0 assists, this is not the ideal start that he or his father LeBron James had in mind.
There has been nothing spectacularly bad about his performances, with decent highlights albeit unspectacular ones.
That was TOUGH! 💪
Bronny James gets the bucket through the contact. @SouthBayLakers pic.twitter.com/aFiCzMdDWP
— NBA G League (@nbagleague) November 18, 2024
Bronny pulled off a clutch defensive stop when he blocked a driving guard at the rim with less than 40 seconds left in the game.
BLOCKED BY BRONNY 🚫
James gets up for the rejection! @SouthBayLakers pic.twitter.com/LI2Hw2wVkN
— NBA G League (@nbagleague) November 18, 2024
His first G League bucket also was a major highlight as James sunk a one-dribble pull-up against the Jazz.
1⃣st bucket of the season pic.twitter.com/mnuEnQ7oip
— South Bay Lakers (@SouthBayLakers) November 10, 2024
Due to his defensive activity and foundation, there haven’t been many egregious lowlights, however, one fan did highlight the relatively easy misses Bronny is falling to.
Bronny James was missing open layups bruh 😭
(Via @RixhTrapper) pic.twitter.com/ELlyJ0SC9c
— BricksCenter (@BricksCenter) November 10, 2024
Bronny is a developing raw prospect, so he’s bound to get better the more reps he gets in the G League. But it does seem like he’s not up to speed with other G League players, let alone players at the NBA level.
It’s hard to remain wholly positive about his development given the circumstances it’s coming under, as there isn’t much sound basketball reason behind signing him to a four-year contract when this is his skill level.
James could develop into a solid NBA player but his time in the G League is off to a rough start, similar to his few minutes in the NBA, in the Summer League, and last season with the USC Trojans.
Bronny James Will Not Travel To Road G League Games
The two games Bronny has appeared in had another game in the middle against the Santa Cruz Warriors on the road, one which Bronny didn’t travel to as he’s expected to only play home G League games due to the G League team flying in regular economy instead of first class like the NBA players.
There’s a valid concern for Bronny to be worried about being in economy class due to his popularity, which is more than many NBA players, let alone G League players. Safety concerns aside, this is not a good route of development for Bronny.
One of the reasons why the G League is such a valuable tool is the adversity it gives the players, especially when playing in away gyms. Stripping that part away from Bronny will cause him to develop slower, especially with this growing trend that the Lakers will have to buck existing norms and practices to accommodate Bronny’s development on his and Rich Paul’s terms.
The South Bay Lakers is known to provide great NBA role-players, with Alex Caruso and Austin Reaves their biggest successes while most recently housing Scotty Pippen Jr. before he earned a rotational role on the Memphis Grizzlies. If Bronny isn’t getting the full experience of being on that squad, how is he supposed to be a successful developmental story like the others?
Bronny has made six appearances this season for the Los Angeles Lakers, playing a total of 16 minutes and registering four points, one rebound, two assists, and one steal, shooting 1-6 from the field and 0-4 from three. This shows he isn’t ready to be an NBA player, but his G League production is just as concerning given how poor it has been.
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