Lakers Change Course on Bronny James, As Rookie Will Make G League Road Debut

Ricardo Klein | Dec 11, 2024

Dec 8, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Bronny James (9) warms up prior to the game against the Portland Trail Blazers at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Los Angeles Lakers rookie guard Bronny James will make his G League road debut for the South Bay Lakers on Thursday.

ESPN's Shams Charnia was among the first to report on X. 

Lakers' Bronny James will play his first NBA G League South Bay road game on Thursday vs. Valley Suns, sources tell ESPN. James began the G League season shuttling between the Lakers and South Bay home games, but sides kept door open the opportunity for road contests.

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) December 11, 2024

James will make his road debut for the South Bay Lakers against the Valley Suns. At the NBA level, James remained on the outside of the rotation, playing just three minutes in one lone December appearance. 

After only playing in three home games for the G League Lakers, he will travel with the team and get more opportunities on the court. 

James began the G League season shuttling between the Lakers and South Bay home games, but both sides kept the door open for road contests. ESPN's Brian Windhorst reported earlier in the season that James will only be playing home games with the South Bay Lakers. 

“He’s only going to play in the South Bay Lakers’ home games," Windhorst said. "He’s only going to kind of be a part-time G League player, and he’s not getting on United Airlines to fly to these road games."

James needs all of the reps he can get, and now that he will travel with South Bay on the road, it should be a good thing for his development. The Lakers selected James with the No. 55 overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft.

L.A. knew that he would be a project, especially after coming off of one season at USC, where he averaged 4.8 points, 2.8 total rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 0.8 steals per game across 25 games. 

He's struggled more often than not at the NBA level. In limited appearances, James is averaging 0.6 points, 0.1 rebounds, 0.3 assists, and 0.1 steals in 2.6 minutes of action and shooting 12.5 percent from the field on eight field goal attempts in seven games. 

James last played on Sunday, recording a block in three minutes of action against the Portland Trail Blazers. 

His time in the G League has been vastly different. In three games, James is averaging 8.7 points, 3.0 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.0 steals, and 1.0 blocks while shooting 29 percent from the field in 26.3 minutes of action. 

James should be getting a lot of playing time with the South Bay Lakers and eventually becoming a player who can help the Lakers out in the long run if all works out. 

More Ball Around: Vince Carter, Tracy McGrady Approved for Part Ownership for Buffalo Bills