Lakers News: Pistons Fans Erupt with ‘We Want Bronny’ Chants

Ricardo Sandoval | Nov 4, 2024

Nov 1, 2024; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Los Angeles Lakers guard Bronny James (9) during warm-up before a game against the Toronto Raptors at Scotiabank Arena. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images / John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images

The Los Angeles Lakers are in a deadlock with the lowly Detroit Pistons, but that isn't stopping fans from chanting for Lakers rookie guard Bronny James. 

In the middle of the third quarter, Pistons fans were chanting, 'We want Bronny.' 

Dan Woike of the Los Angeles Times shared the video via Twitter/X. 

Pretty significant “We want Bronny” chant just now pic.twitter.com/4Bgfxb49V0

— Dan Woike (@DanWoikeSports) November 5, 2024

Bronny has not played since last Wednesday against the Cleveland Cavaliers. He has played in only three games and recorded two points. 

With this being a close game as things stand, the Lakers and head coach JJ Redick will likely keep James on the bench for this one. If he does not enter the game, his next chance to enter an NBA game will be Wednesday, when the Lakers take on the Memphis Grizzlies. 

It will be the final game of their five-game road trip.

Once the road trip ends, Bronny will be shuffling between the G-League and the main Lakers roster. This has been the plan all along, as the team wanted to give the rookie a chance to see how NBA life is out on the road.

While he hasn't played much, Bronny has been getting to experience being around the team and seeing how things are done. He did score his first career points in a loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers, a moment that was special to the entire James family.

"It was insane," Bronny said of the reception after finishing with 2 points, 2 assists and 1 steal in five minutes. "Much more than I anticipated for sure. But it's all love. It was insane. It was a nice moment. The chants really got me. I was straight-faced, but I felt it and it felt really good, especially coming from here. Yeah, it was a special moment for me for sure."

Bronny hasn't seen much time on the court but that's been by design from the Lakers. He isn't ready to be a full-time NBA player and will need to develop his skills more in the G-League going forward. 

The Lakers have spent time this offseason putting an emphasis on player development, with James being one of the main pieces of that. Redick spoke earlier this summer about the plan for James, saying he will be given an opportunity to grow his game.

"For us, prioritizing player development, we view Bronny as like, case study one, because his base level of feel, athleticism, point-of-attack defender, shooting, passing, there's a lot to like about his game," Redick said in July. "And as we sort of build out our player development program holistically, he's going to have a great opportunity to become an excellent NBA player."

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