The Los Angeles Lakers suffered a big loss on Tuesday night to the Philadelphia 76ers on the second night of a back-to-back. Anthony Davis played only 10 minutes after suffering an abdominal injury, and without a healthy Gabe Vincent, the Lakers were extremely thin at guard. So, head coach JJ Redick turned to Bronny James for his first game as a real rotation player outside of Opening Night.
Bronny has spent most of the season in the G League, and has shown real strides as of late. But it was maybe too soon to give him 15 minutes of NBA action as Bronny finished with zero points on 0-for-5 from the field with three turnovers and was a minus-8.
The Lakers 2024 second-round draft pick knew going into the night that he was going to get some real minutes, but the call to get him to Philadelphia came out of nowhere, via Spectrum SportsNet:
“I knew beforehand that I was coming and getting some minutes but I didn’t know before I got the call to come. It came out of nowhere. Just always trying to stay ready to play and keep my mind right.”
Given the situation the Lakers were in — on the second night of a back-to-back with some injuries — Bronny’s main focus wasn’t on anything other than playing the right way and bringing energy:
“Just bringing energy. I asked the coaches and they told me to just come in a be smart and play my game and play for my teammates. Just trying to do the right thing as a rookie is my main priority. Just got out there and try to play right.”
While it still wasn’t a great showing from the former USC Trojan, Bronny feels better about his minutes no than he did on the first game of the season, and thanks his time in the G League for that:
“I feel like I’m a lot more prepared now. Just coming out and stay ready after the G League stint and the season being a little bit more. Just staying ready and coming in and playing smart… A lot more. You said it, reps are the biggest things for me. So just coming in and playing as much as I can is really good for me.”
The Lakers are still hopeful that Bronny can become a contributor at the NBA level, and they are not going to be deterred from that with one less-than-ideal showing a few months into his rookie season. But it does mean there will likely be another long G League stint before we see the next Bronny sighting.
LeBron James takes accountability for Lakers turnovers
While Bronny James had three turnovers in his 15 minutes of action, it was hardly just him coughing up possessions. The Lakers turned the ball over 22 times, led by Bronny’s father — LeBron James — with eight turnovers.
After the game, he took accountability for the high turnover numbers, saying that taking care of the ball starts with him.
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