The Los Angeles Lakers have recalled Bronny James from the G League earlier this week and the rookie guard did not disappoint in his return.
Bronny scored on a difficult drive to the basket late in the fourth quarter of the Lakers’ 136-115 rout of the New Orleans Pelicans at Crypto.com Arena on Tuesday, March 4.
The 6-foot-2 Lakers rookie curled over a screen and shook off his defender — Pelicans key rotation guard Jordan Hawkins — before using the glass over two towering Pelicans defenders — 6’8 Jeremiah Earl-Robinson and 6’10 Karlo Matkovic — for his lone basket that delighted the home crowd.
‘He’s Gotten a Lot Better’
Bronny finished with two points on 1-of-3 shooting with one rebound in four minutes of action while his father, LeBron James, reached the 50,000 scoring milestone with 34 points to lead the Lakers.
“I think he’s had a really productive rookie season,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said, per Silver Screen and Roll. “He’s gotten a lot better. We can see that. I think the first time you go through that as a rookie – sometimes you have to go through it for three or four years as well – it’s different to not play every night and particularly for a second round pick, it’s very common for them to sort of go back and forth between the NBA roster and the G League and go on assignment.”
Bronny’s game and confidence thanks to the Lakers key decision to assign him more often in the G League, where he is averaging 21.9 points on 39.3% 3-point shooting, 5.4 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 2.0 steals through seven regular season games.
Bronny has scored over his last five games in the NBA, including a career-high nine points against the Utah Jazz in the Lakers’ 131-119 win on Feb. 12 right before the All-Star break.
In his last five NBA games, Bronny averaged 4.2 points on 46.7% shooting and 0.8 assists in 6.4 minutes.
Bronny Went Toe-to-Toe With Isaiah Thomas
Before the Lakers recalled him, he just held his ground against Isaiah Thomas, a former teammate and rival of his father, in their G League showdown over the weekend.
Thomas scored a game-high 29 points to go along with one rebound, eight assists, two steals and one block to lead Salt Lake City Stars past the South Bay Lakers 123-114 but not without a fight from Bronny’s team.
Bronny finished with 16 points, six rebounds, a season-high eight assists and one steal. It was his seventh double-digit scoring in the G League.
Bronny’s final basket of the game kept South Bay within a striking distance 100-105 but Thomas answered with a free throw and a 3-pointer that padded Salt Lake City’s lead.
South Bay could only come closer to within four, 112-108 on Sir’Jabari Rice’s 3-point play, the rest of the way.
Thomas, a 12-year NBA veteran, battled with Bronny’s father in the playoffs when he was still with the Boston Celtics and LeBron with his hometown team Cleveland Cavaliers. They later became teammates in Cleveland during LeBron’s final season there in 2018 and twice with the Lakers.
Bronny’s Three-Level Scoring Development
Before Bronny took on the challenge of playing against Thomas on the road, he touted his growing confidence as a three-level scorer after their last game — a 118-98 South Bay win over Valley Suns on Feb. 22 at home.
“I feel like I can score it on all three levels,” Bronny told Clutchpoint’s Raj Chipalu after scoring 24 points, his fourth 20-point game in the G League. “I’m just taking everything that’s open for me.”
South Bay has a 3-4 record when Bronny is on assignment. He has helped South Bay to win three of his last four games on assignment. South Bay has a 3-11 record without Bronny this season.
“Mainly trying to get downhill and get to the paint, draw some fouls,” Bronny explained. “I can open up my jump shot and just take what the defense gives me. I wasn’t able to get all the way to the paint sometimes, so I gotta settle for the [midrange].”
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