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The Los Angeles Lakers suffered a loss to the Chicago Bulls on Saturday night, with Bronny James only playing six minutes at the tail end of the game. However, his best performance of the season was just two games ago in a Thursday night matchup against the Milwaukee Bucks.
With several key players sidelined for the Lakers, James took full advantage of the opportunity, posting a career-high 17 points off the bench. He also recorded five assists, three rebounds, shot 70% from the field, and knocked down 50% of his three-point attempts.
Ahead of L.A.’s matchup with the Orlando Magic on Monday, which kicks off a four-game road trip, the Lakers announced that James will be heading down to the G League to play for the South Bay Lakers.
This move will likely keep him in the G League for the duration of the Lakers’ road trip, which concludes with a Saturday matchup against the Memphis Grizzlies—an important game for both teams as they battle for positioning in the top five of the Western Conference.
Despite the pressure of being the son of one of the greatest basketball players in history, James has remained level-headed. His performance on Thursday is a testament to his potential, and Lakers head coach JJ Redick was quick to praise his maturity and skill.
“I saw some video interviews that he did at the combine in May, and I was not the Lakers coach, just an NBA analyst and podcaster at the time. I texted LeBron, ‘Man, Bronny has his head on straight, like he gets it,'” Redick shared. “Since day one, I’ve just been impressed with the person that he is and to deal with, frankly, [explicit], because of who his dad is, and just keep a level head about it and be a class act. It says a lot about him, and a lot about that family and the way LeBron and Savannah have raised him.”
Redick added, “It was obvious to me, from the moment I started spending time on the court with him this summer, that he was certainly going to be an NBA player, and I still believe that—he’ll be an NBA player.”
Monday’s game in Orlando is the first of a four-game road trip for the Lakers. The team returns home on March 31 for a big game against the Houston Rockets.
While LA is on the road, South Bay will play four games. The first two will come at home against the Santa Cruz Warriors on Monday and Tuesday. It is reasonable to assume James will be active for both of those games, given the Lakers’ announcement on Sunday.
Selected 55th overall in the 2024 NBA draft, James has appeared in four-straight games for the Lakers and 23 total this season.
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