A storyline that will follow the Los Angeles Lakers all season long is rookie guard Bronny James, who is slated to play next to his father LeBron James and make history at some point in the near future.
Despite being a late second-round pick, lofty expectations are being placed on Bronny given the stature of LeBron and expecting his oldest son to follow suit. But he simply is still growing and developing as a player after suffering cardiac arrest a little over a year ago.
With a new head coach in JJ Redick, he wants to emphasize player development and be able to grow talent instead of relying on trades or signings. L.A. took the floor for their first preseason game on Friday and Bronny saw 16 minutes of action.
While his offensive game is a work in progress, shooting 1-for-6 from the field, James tallied three impressive blocks. Redick shared his thoughts on the 19-year-old’s progress so far since being drafted.
“As a coaching staff, before the game, as we were kind of going over our rotation matrix, we were talking about Bronny,” Redick said. “He’s had some really good days in August and September. He’s had three really good days this week. We’re really happy with his progress. The kid, he can do some things defensively at his size that are really unique and can, I think turn into a really disruptive defender, and that manifested itself. On the offensive end, he’s still kind of figuring out who he is, and that’s our job as a player development program just to build him up. But I like what I saw from Bronny. Truthfully, he’s so easy to coach, and he’s got a great soul and just a great energy about him. I like being around him and I’m rooting for him. He’s a good player that we are happy to have in our program.”
There are going to be opinions shared about Bronny and where he is as a player, but for Redick to share this sentiment about his rookie could propel the former USC Trojan to play with confidence.
For Bronny to have that support from Redick, a positive environment to grow and develop could work in his favor as he navigates through his rookie season. Getting reps will be vital and the preseason is a perfect time to get those.
Bronny James sensing better vibes surrounding Lakers under JJ Redick
After last season, it became clear that the Lakers needed to clean house with their coaching staff. There are inherit risks by hiring JJ Redick, but Bronny James is sensing better vibes under the new head coach in only a short amount of time.
