Lakers News: Bronny James Reflects on Low-Scoring Summer League Debut

The No. 55 pick looked really good on the other end of the court.

Jul 6, 2024; San Francisco, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Bronny James Jr. (9) shoots the ball against the Sacramento Kings during the fourth quarter at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports / Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

Rookie Los Angeles Lakers combo guard Bronny James, the No. 55 pick out of USC in the 2024 NBA Draft, drew the starting point guard spot for the Lakers' first Summer League game, a 108-94 loss to the Sacramento Kings on Saturday at the Chase Center in San Francisco, as the opening game of the California Classic stretch of Summer League contests.

The 6-foot-4 pro scored four points on just 2-of-9 shooting from the floor (22.2 percent), dished out two assists, grabbed two rebounds, and logged one steal. He posted a team-low -15, as did shooting guard Dalton Knecht, the Lakers' first round pick out of Tennessee.

Postgame, Bronny James, son of 20-time All-Star Lakers forward LeBron James, reflected on his pro debut, per Jovan Buha of The Athletic:

Bronny James talks to the media after his NBA summer league debut at the California Classic pic.twitter.com/qOnZ19jnE5

— Jovan Buha (@jovanbuha) July 6, 2024

"Every first game that I step on the next level, there's always some butterflies in my stomach," James said. "But as soon as the ball tips and we go a couple times down then it goes away and [we're] just playing basketball."

When it came to his first field goal, a midrange jumper, James was totally pragmatic, describing the decision to take that attempt as essentially being necessitated by the Kings' defense. Watch James and Knecht score their first-ever buckets for L.A. below:

Shoutout to the rookies 👏 pic.twitter.com/tyVsawofsi

— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) July 6, 2024

"I was just trying to focus on being aggressive, going downhill and trying to get a layup out of it, but that wasn't open all the time, so I just settled for the midrange, but my coach [Dane Johnson] always tells me to get donwhill because I'm a bigger guard," James explained.

When asked what most impressed him about playing at the Chase Center, James acknowledged he was surprised by the enthusiastic reception the Summer League Lakers received.

"Maybe the atmosphere. It was more than I expected. I mean, it's a big game for me, but I didn't know if people from Golden State would come and rep for me. So that was pretty nice to see."

More Lakers: Dalton Knecht, Bronny James Fall to Sacramento in Summer League Debuts