Los Angeles Lakers‘ highly-scrutinized rookie Bronny James remained unshaken despite his string of poor performances to start his NBA career.
Bronny, the eldest son of Lakers superstar LeBron James, was scoreless over his last two games. He’s only hit 1 of 11, including 0 of 4 from the 3-point line, in the Lakers’ first three preseason games.
“For me, it’s just getting comfortable,” Bronny James told ESPN’s Dave McMenamin following their October 15 shootaround before facing the Golden State Warriors in Las Vegas. “Just go out there and get reps. That’s the most important thing. Grow my confidence and be more comfortable as much as I can. I feel good, but the numbers could be better. I just got to get my confidence up.”
Bronny James has the worst plus-minus among all 494 players who have logged a minute in the exhibition games, according to Sporting News, after his third game. The Lakers have been outscored by 40 points per 100 possessions in the 35 minutes Bronny James was on the floor.
The Lakers’ 19-year-old rookie also has more turnovers (5) than rebounds (3) and assists (1).
In six minutes of playing time in the Lakers’ 115-110 win over the Milwaukee Bucks on October 10, Bronny James missed all his four attempts and did not register any other statistic in the box score. He was minus-12 in that game, where undrafted rookie Quincy Olivari led the Lakers’ fourth-quarter comeback with 11 points and added five rebounds with two assists and without a single turnover in 10 minutes.
To Bronny James’ credit, he had three blocks in his preseason debut against the Minnesota Timberwolves on October 4 — the only highlight of his NBA career so far.
LeBron James Keeps Distance From Bronny James Scrutiny Amid Struggles
LeBron James shut down a Bronny James question during his media availability after their October 14 practice.
“You gotta ask him,” James said, per McMenamin. “He’s a grown man, ask him how he’s handling it. He’s a professional. We know why the attention is there.”
LeBron James chose to direct a Bronny James question today to his son, rather than speak on Bronny’s experiences. “He’s a grown man, ask him how he’s handling it,” James said
It was a stark contrast of LeBron James’ mood after he and Bronny James played together against the Phoenix Suns in the Lakers’ preseason game.
“I’m prepping for the game like it’s regular game,” a smiling LeBron James told reporters after the game. “But the moment when we came out of the timeout and he was picking up full court and I went up — because my guy was taking the ball out. We stood next to each other and I kind of looked at him, and it was just like, ‘Is this “The Matrix” or something?’ It just didn’t feel real.”
LeBron and Bronny James shared the floor together for 4 minutes and 9 seconds.
ESPN’s Shams Charania reported that the father-son duo could make history as soon as the Lakers’ season opener against the Timberwolves on October 22.
NBA Scout: Bronny James ‘Set Up For Failure’
One Eastern Conference scout, who evaluated Bronny for years, told ESPN’s Baxter Holmes that Bronny was being “set up for failure” by those in his inner circle, including his father.
“You’re set up for failure,” the scout told Holmes. “It’s like, what’s the expectation here?”
Bronny James was not initially projected to be drafted this year after he averaged pedestrian numbers (4.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.1 assists) as a freshman at USC. But his improved showing at the NBA Draft Combine boosted his stock.
Aside from the Lakers, several teams, including the Phoenix Suns and the Golden State Warriors, have expressed interest in Bronny James. But his agent, Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul, steered him to the Lakers by threatening other teams that he would take younger James to Australia if they selected him, according to ESPN’s Bob Myers.
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Lakers Rookie Bronny James Reflects on Slow NBA Start: ‘I Feel Good’