EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — Since Bronny James was selected 55th overall by the Los Angeles Lakers in June’s NBA draft, the organization had planned for the South Bay Lakers’ season opener on Saturday.
While South Bay’s 110-96 victory over the Salt Lake City Stars at the franchise’s practice facility couldn’t match the aura of the NBA’s opening night at Crypto.com Arena, the time 20 years spent getting reps in the G League will arguably be more crucial to his development.
It took James just 43 seconds to score his first points in the G League, hitting a 17-foot jumper along the baseline.
“I was just getting a bucket,” James said after the game. “It affected me, and I just… yeah. I didn’t fail.”
He finished with 6 points on 2 of 9 shooting (0 of 4 on 3), 4 assists, 3 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 block and 5 turnovers in 31 minutes, loosely mirroring his production as a freshman at USC ( 4.8 points, 2.8 rebounds, 2.1 assists per game) and during the Lakers’ preseason (4.2 points, 1.5 rebounds, 0.3 assists per game).
Lakers two-way guard Quincy Olivari, who led South Bay with 28 points and assisted on James’ first basket, gave credit to the rookie’s performance, despite the relatively pedestrian stat line.
“I was happy to see him go out and show the world that he can play,” Olivari said. “I think I’m a big proponent of the idea that he’s a great basketball player and that the criticism he gets is unfair.”
South Bay coach Zach Guthrie, hired in the offseason to replace Dane Johnson, pointed to James’ defense as a bright spot.
“I thought he did a great job of dominating the ball,” Guthrie said. “He played very well, he played selflessly, he played within the flow of the game. And I thought like all of our guards, we defended at a high level. We talked about dictating. They weren’t comfortable in their offense.”
The enormous attention that being the son of LeBron James has generated for the rookie so far: “We want Bronny!” The chants are already a nightly occurrence during Lakers road games this season, they followed it all the way to the South Bay. His gold No. 9 Lakers uniform with “James Jr.” On the back was the only jersey for sale in the team store. And when the announcer introduced the South Bay starters, James was left for last, a distinction normally reserved for a star.
Lakers coach JJ Redick, Lakers vice president of basketball operations and general manager Rob Pelinka, and Lakers teammates Anthony Davis and D’Angelo Russell appeared in the courtside seats , joining James’ parents, LeBron and Savannah, and his younger sister, Zhuri.
“He’s one of the great stories in basketball,” Salt Lake coach Steve Wojciechowski said of Bronny James. “When you see it out there, it’s exciting. It’s exciting for the G League and it brings attention to our league. And we have one of the best leagues in the world. Maybe the third best league in the world, after the NBA and EuroLeague. And “They are truly the future stars of the game. Their story is bringing attention not only to South Bay but to the league as a whole and to the guys who play in the league.”
South Bay sold out the game (about 700 tickets) after only five sellouts in 24 home games last season.
“I’ve seen all the rumors about me coming to the G,” James said. “It’s just an amazing experience for me to go out and play my game and get some minutes under me. I’m excited about it.”
James will be with the Lakers on Sunday for their game against the visiting Toronto Raptors.
South Bay’s next game is Friday on the road against the Santa Cruz Warriors. They will play again in El Segundo next Sunday against the Stockton Kings.
South Bay president and CEO Joey Buss said James’ future schedule (shuffling between the Lakers and the G League) is not set in stone.
“That’s going to be fluid,” Buss told ESPN. “We’re going to do what’s best for their development. There will be a lot of things we’ll do for all of the assigned players, and decisions will be made based on where they are, the status of their injuries, how many bodies they need to practice. There are a lot of variables.” “So nothing unique for Bronny, he’s just in that system.”
