Bronny James might be the most hyped second round pick in NBA Draft history. The 55th overall selection of the Lakers in 2024 came in with millions of fans and followers, as well as plenty of detractors that were eager to see him falter.
Being the son of LeBron James comes with plenty of perks, but also a ton of pressure, and Bronny seemed to feel that during his brief stints of play with the Lakers’ NBA roster as a rookie. As the season wore on, he spent more time with the Lakers’ G League affiliate, the South Bay Lakers, out of the spotlight with more focus on his actual development as a player.
Coming into his second season in the NBA, there’s less buzz about him, but after a strong Summer League showing, the Lakers are more optimistic than ever about the youngest James’ potential. Lakers lead assistant Nate McMillan recently went on “The Sports Shop with Reese + K-Mac” and discussed Bronny’s growth and development in the G League — and why he believes Bronny could factor into the Lakers’ rotation next season:
We’ve seen a lot of growth from year one. He had, I thought, a really good Summer League this year. A young guy like that, coming in with this type of pressure that he came into the league with last year, was unbelievable. When he played in the Las Vegas Summer League last year and this year, his games were sold out to see him. The fan base has really, I think for the most part, been really supportive of him.
He spent a lot of time in the G League this season, and I really feel that helped him because when he came out into this Summer League and played every game this summer, you could see the confidence. He was much more relaxed than he was last year. And everybody would have been as nervous as can be last season, but he was much more relaxed this season. His shot was never broken, but the confidence, you could see he was knocking down those shots, getting to the basket. Defensively, we wanted him to challenge himself to pick up the ball.
But to see the two of them work together, it was amazing. And LeBron as a father, it was amazing. … But LeBron made sure that it was always business when they were on the floor, and that he was setting the example not only for his son but for his team. I love Bronny. Great young man and we expect him to possibly get some minutes this year.
Most of Bronny’s NBA playing time last season — 181 minutes in 27 games — came during garbage time, but McMillan seems to think he’s developing into a player that could figure into the actual Lakers’ rotation sooner than later. The challenge for Bronny finding minutes this year will be that the Lakers have added some more veteran depth to their backcourt with Marcus Smart.
Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves will start, with Smart, Gabe Vincent and Dalton Knecht as the expected bench depth, but Bronny figures to be sixth in that guard rotation. While that might not mean regular minutes early in the season, he could certainly find himself called into action if they suffer any injuries, and given the Lakers’ belief in his defensive upside, he might get moved up in the rotation for certain matchups.
That would still represent considerable growth from last year, and it would be a testament to the work he’s put in and the development plan the Lakers put together for him in conjunction with their G League staff. It wouldn’t be surprising to still see him make the occasional trip to South Bay to get a more live game reps, but it does sound like Bronny will spend more time this season on the Lakers’ roster with a shot at real minutes.
