Los Angeles Lakers rookie Bronny James was noticeably absent in the South Bay Lakers’ last two games despite the team’s announcement of his assignment to the G League on November 24 for their three-game home stand.
The South Bay Lakers split the first two games — 116-98 loss to Stockton Kings and 95-85 win over San Diego Clippers — without Bronny James.
The reason was revealed when the Lakers listed Bronny James in their injury report ahead of the team’s November 27 road game in San Antonio against the Spurs.
Bronny, the son of Lakers star LeBron James, is nursing a heel contusion, according to the injury report shared by Jovan Buha of The Athletic on X.
Lakers’ injury report for tonight in San Antonio: pic.twitter.com/Ah0rL2B5ir
— Jovan Buha (@jovanbuha) November 27, 2024
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Bronny James’ first two games in the G League had been disastrous. He only averaged 5.0 points on a horrendous 21.1% shooting on the floor while missing all his three 3-point attempts. He also put up 2.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists against 3.0 assists. His saving grace is his defensive stats (1.5 steals and 1.0 blocks). He also averaged a -4.0 net rating.
Bronny James will also skip the South Bay Lakers’ November 27 matchup against the Rip City Mix. His next chance to play is on December 6 when the South Bay Lakers host the Salt Lake City Stars.
Bronny James Only Slated to Play in South Bay Lakers’ Home Games
Bronny James is only scheduled to play for the South Bay Lakers during their home games, according to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, which he criticized in the “The Hoop Collective” podcast.
“I don’t know whose idea it was, but obviously, the Lakers are fine with it,” Windhorst said. “They’re doing it. On this particular instance, I think that’s gone too far, and I don’t think it benefits Bronny. I don’t think it benefits the South Bay Lakers, and I don’t think it benefits LeBron at this point.”
Bronny James could benefit from more game reps in the G League rather than warming up the Lakers bench and waiting for cameo appearances in blowout games.
Unlike the NBA teams, the G League teams are flying commercial, which could have factored into the Lakers’ decision.
Bronny James has become an attraction since his NBA Summer League debut. The South Bay Lakers home games in which Bronny James played were sold out.
Magic Johnson: Bronny James ‘Not Just Ready’ to Play in NBA
Lakers legend Earvin “Magic” Johnson made it clear his preference about the team’s handling of Bronny James’ development.
“If I’m Bronny, I would tell my dad to just let me play in the G League all season so that I can develop,” Johnson said on the Jimmy Kimmel Show in September. “He needs playing time. He doesn’t need to be sitting on the Lakers bench and not playing. That’s not a knock against him.
“He’s just not ready. He needs to develop more, and then he will be ready because he has some great talent and skills, but he needs to develop those skills at a much better clip if he wants to play 15-20 minutes a night in the NBA or more.”
The 19-year-old rookie has appeared in five NBA games, including the historic moment with LeBron as the first father-son tandem to play in the same NBA game, totaling only 16 minutes.
Bronny James has only scored four points so far in his very young NBA career on a rough 1-of-6 shooting.
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