Welcome BRONNY JAMES - Lakers 55th Pick

MJST · Retired Number Joined: 06 Jul 2014 Posts: 30127

Bronny 39 Points

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tox · Franchise Player Joined: 16 Nov 2015 Posts: 20927

good (bleep) bronny

pio2u · Retired Number Joined: 26 Dec 2012 Posts: 56621

NBA World Reacts To Bronny James' Performance In Lakers-Warriors G League Game
Bronny James had a dominant performance for the South Bay Lakers. Bronny James finished the game with 39 points, seven rebounds, four assists and four steals while shooting 14/21 from the field and 4/8 from the three-point range.

https://www.si.com/fannation/nba/fastbreak/nba-world-reacts-to-bronny-james-performance-in-lakers-warriors-g-league-game

manlisten · Star Player Joined: 09 Jul 2004 Posts: 4425

defense · Retired Number Joined: 12 Jan 2010 Posts: 41751

Lets trade Luka for some 3 and D and build around Bronny

miggz23 · Star Player Joined: 29 Nov 2018 Posts: 9432

His footwork is getting better along with his handles… He is also starting to use his body along with deceleration moves in his game. His jump shot look solid.

He looked like a real NBA player in a gleague. That 39 looked pretty effortless.

levon · Franchise Player Joined: 11 Oct 2016 Posts: 15153

pio2u · Retired Number Joined: 26 Dec 2012 Posts: 56621

Stats vs Warriors (3/25/25)

Bronny - 17 pts (5-12 treys), 6 rbs, 9 assists.

Game 2: 17 pts (5-18 Fg, 5-12 treys, 1-1 fts), 6 rbs, 9 ast, 2 stl, .

56 pts (19-39 FG, 9-20 treys, 6-7 fts), 13 rbs, 13 ast, 6 stl

48.7% FG, 45.0% Treys, 85.7% FT, 6.5 Rbs, 6.5 Assists, 3 steals

pio2u · Retired Number Joined: 26 Dec 2012 Posts: 56621

Evaluating Bronny James' 1st season in the G League
The 55th pick in the 2024 NBA Draft showed his potential over the course of 18 games in the G League this season.

Bronny James averaged 21.9 points, 5.3 rebounds and 5.3 assists over 11 games in the G League regular season.

https://www.nba.com/news/evaluating-bronny-james-first-season-g-league

ThreePointBomber · Posted: Wed Apr 02, 2025 12:43 pm Post subject:

Runway8 · Posted: Wed Apr 02, 2025 12:59 pm Post subject:

Runway8 · Posted: Wed Apr 02, 2025 1:06 pm Post subject:

The narrative will change from his dad pulled some strings to get him drafted, otherwise no one would have picked him, to, his dad made sure nobody drafted him before 55 because he wanted to play with his son.

I've already heard these contradictory statements from SAS. I mean which is it? He's not an NBA prospect, or he was a better than 55th pick prospect that Lebron had to make sure others don't draft him? As time goes by, and Bronny proves everyone wrong, the latter narrative will start to get cemented.
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LakerLanny · Retired Number Joined: 24 Oct 2001 Posts: 48455

Give the kid his credit, I admit I didn't think he deserved to be drafted but now the pick looks fine based on his stats and potential.

Plus, he plays hard which I like...he isn't loafing around on the court even when shots aren't going in and such.
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PICKnPOP · Star Player Joined: 14 Jul 2014 Posts: 6498

I’d say he’s a steal for a 55th pick. He looks better than Max Christie or Lewis did in their rookie seasons. Heck, he looks better than JHS too in my opinion and he was a # 17 pick. Yeah, JHS put up monster stats in the gleague but he was garbage when he got NBA minutes.

Bronny At least stepped up in one NBA game.
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ContagiousInspiration · Posted: Wed Apr 02, 2025 6:13 pm Post subject:

Inspector Gadget · Retired Number Joined: 18 Apr 2016 Posts: 49633

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waterman40 · Posted: Thu Apr 03, 2025 4:06 am Post subject:

I didn't invest a lot in the pick, yeah we used the 55th pick for Lebron's son, but 55th picks don't become rotation players.

Now though look, he already looks better than JHS did, and if he continues, he probably gets a spot next year on the team, good on Bronny.
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wolfpaclaker · Retired Number Joined: 29 May 2002 Posts: 59449

The thing about G league though - the leagues do tend to allow your draft picks to go there and shoot as much as you want and play as you will, in the sense it's basically a bonafide practice for your picks.

You won't get benched for bad shots, defense, passing etc. In the NBA the W-Ls matter so you do get that.

I put almost no weight in G league stats, I've watched quite a bit and realized they are really empty stats sort of like the summer league.

What I hold weight on is when games matter how the player plays. I'll go back to Bynum, way way back. He got so much heat and was not worth a lottery pick. Then he has that exchange with Shaq in a big game that mattered. That really stood out and you knew at that moment that Bynum was worth the risk.

With Bronny I've never seen a moment in a meaningful situation in the NBA where he's really made a difference. Now that doesn't mean he never will. I'm just saying G league stats and throwing up numbers in garbage time in the NBA is not really a way to measure progress.

JHS is playing a lot of those meaningless minutes and just had a 18 point outing for 76ers. Doesn't hold much weight either.

Also lets go back to Reaves. His rook year. Vogel gave him a chance right away. He showed some real signs immediately. You felt it. Now sure Reaves was always way better than your typical rookie. I'm just saying whenever Bronny's been given moments to show something in a game/situation that matters, he's either crap or shows nothing of substantial value.

Max Christie may be a good example but I'll say this, Max showed me right away he at least had some offense and length over players at guard. I don't even get that with Bronny. We're basically developing a guy to be a backup in the NBA, and rarely you see teams do that. With Christie, we at least developed him to a point where he was a starter for us on a 4th seeded Lakers team. I don't see Bronny getting that. Sure, 2nd round picks usually end up out of the league. That doesn't mean you draft someone KNOWING FULL WELL his best case scenario is a borderline NBA player/backup. That's where the Lebron James argument comes in. You did so because of Lebron. Which is totally fine. I don't have a problem with it. It's a small small price to pay to keep Lebron happy and engaged (Look at Lebron's level this year and where our team is in the standings vs last). What I don't have an issue with (that others including Lebron seem to) is calling a spade a spade. Bronny got drafted not on his upside, but because of his father. That's not to say he can't make it in the NBA. Look at Reaves, he wasn't even drafted. With hard work, support etc. anyone at that borderline NBA level can make it. Just, no one would have given that commitment as a draft pick and project to take on if his name were Bronny Rahim instead.

I mean have a look at Max Christie's numbers before drafting in college and compare them to Bronny's. That's the whole area people talk about and I don't know why it offends people. It's not really a lie to say Bronny got drated because he's Lebron's kid. He had a horrendous freshman year and still ended up being drafted. Most players coming off a year like that, won't even declare until a year later or so after a better year. However Bronny always had 1 team in the bag, the one pops played on. Nothing wrong in saying that, you can say that and also believe Bronny can make it in the league ala Max Christie etc.

tox · Franchise Player Joined: 16 Nov 2015 Posts: 20927

Here's what I knew about Bronny pre-draft:
1) Mike [ at ] LG liked him
2) Some other scouts that he was pretty good
3) The Warriors wanted to draft him and Klutch told them to back off

That was enough for me to know he was probably an NBA prospect. Didn't think he would show as much as he has, but I never got the furor given literally 3 dudes were drafted after him

I think Max was a better prospect than Bronny but I also think Max is going to be a high end starter in his prime. I also disagree with the idea you don't develop a backup. I think Bitadzke on the Magic is a good example. If you want to grab high end backups from other teams, you end up overpaying (also see Gabe Vincent). If it's your own guy, you can usually get by with FMV contract.

Drafting Bronny and developing him means you won't be paying the MLE to a Gabe Vincent and that opens up cap elsewhere. There is a big difference between a good backup and a bad one. Vet mins are rarely good back ups so in terms of salary cap management, every small difference matters.

Bronny will be especially important if in '27 offseason, we build a team via FA as it limits how much salary you'll have. Having him earn like $2M as a rotation player is actually really important to fill out a team around, say, Luka and Mitchell

Atticus · Star Player Joined: 11 Nov 2011 Posts: 2744

Dr. Laker · Franchise Player Joined: 12 Apr 2002 Posts: 18343

We knew Bronny had NBA speed/quickness. His drawbacks are:

- Size
- Handle
- Shooting

Does his athleticism allow him to overcome his size, a la Dennis Schoder? It appears that it will.

Can his handle get up to NBA level? He won't be Trae Young or Chris Paul, but his handle has improved even in the course of this season.

Will his shooting get to a level where teams have to stay with him on the PnR and not go under screens? That remains to be seen. Shooting can improve with work.

My prediction? Bronny will become a serviceable 15-20 minute great POA defender/good enough shooter. High end: Darrell Armstrong. Low end: Tyronn Lue.
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wolfpaclaker · Retired Number Joined: 29 May 2002 Posts: 59449

zambia · Star Player Joined: 09 Oct 2007 Posts: 1544

saetarubia · Star Player Joined: 06 Jul 2014 Posts: 6242

Yea. I don't buy the narrative that you don't draft someone at #55 to be a back up. Majorty picks that late are busts. Caruso is not a starter for a contender and Lakers developed him as an undrafted player. OKC traded for him because they beleive he will make a difference in playoffs like he did for Lakers in 2019-20 championship run. Bronny has the tools for Lakers to develop him to be way more valuable than a #55 pick.
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