Lakers News: Bronny James' Inconsistent Summer League Start Doesn't Surprise Scouts

The L.A. rookie point guard has had a rough go of it thus far.

Jul 15, 2024; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Bronny James (9) defends against Boston Celtics guard JD Davison (20) during the first half at Thomas & Mack Center. Mandatory Credit: Lucas Peltier-USA TODAY Sports / Lucas Peltier-USA TODAY Sports

Rookie Los Angeles Lakers point guard Bronny James, the No. 55 pick out of USC, has had an uneven start to his Summer League run.

According to Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints, attendant rival scouts consider his issues par for the course. James couldn't score in double digits through his first four contests, but now has scored 12 or more points in two straight contests, both wins.

An Eastern Conference scout told Siegel that James' issues were not unanticipated.

“He was the 55th overall pick. The fact that he is LeBron's son is why there is all of this hype he will never be able to live up to, but to his credit, Bronny has handled himself better than almost any other player out here,” the scout said. “He is professional and is willing to change the way he has played all of these years before being drafted in attempts to find success in Los Angeles. We have to give him credit for that.”

A different scout does see some potential for Bronny James to have an impact this season... but not in the NBA.

“At the combine and his pro day, Bronny showed flashes of his potential,” the scout said. “Nobody saw him as a first-round guy. With that said, there is certainly potential there for him to truly develop into a role player in the G League. Everyone needs to calm down a little bit with the label of him being a bust because these growing pains were expected. Between his heart problem last summer and having the handle the pressure of being LeBron's son, Bronny is about where a lot of us thought he would be.”

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