Bronny James was chosen by the Los Angeles Lakers with the 55th choice in the 2024 NBA Draft on June 27. At the time, the choice drew a lot of criticism, with many arguing that LeBron James’s influence was the only thing keeping his son in the NBA today.
However, it’s unlikely that Rich Paul, Bronny’s agent, helped elevate LeBron’s oldest son’s draft position by literally threatening clubs not to select his client. Refusing to practice for clubs other than the Phoenix Suns and Lakers did not help either.
It’s okay since Bronny James’ defense is still far superior to his defense.
Bronny left for the California Classic Summer League to start his NBA career shortly after being picked. After going 2-of-9 from the field in his Summer League debut, Bronny finished with four points, two rebounds, two assists, and a steal in 22 minutes.
Due to mild swelling in his left knee, he was unable to play the second half of a back-to-back match the following day. Bronny was merely able to get more sleep before stepping up his preparations for his second Summer League game on Wednesday.
While Bronny’s performance improved slightly overall in his second game, he was still a poor scorer. Going just 1-of-3 from the field, he scored three points, pulled down five rebounds, disheveled two steals, and blocked three shots.
Given that he only averaged 4.8 points per game in his one and only collegiate season at USC, where he played 19.3 minutes per game, the point totals shouldn’t come as a huge surprise. However, it is to be expected that Bronny would pad his defensive stat sheet as a prospect, since many NBA pundits believed he was more equipped to defend than to score early on.
Recall that Bronny is only nineteen years old. What we currently see in him is far from where he will end up, particularly in Summer League. But, the 6-foot-2 player’s effect on defense is already a promising sign of his future development. Bronny’s strong defensive play should provide him a job even if he never develops into a very good scorer.
