Bronny James has been the talk of the town ever since he was picked by the Los Angeles Lakers in the second round of the 2024 NBA Draft. Many believe that he is only in the NBA due to his father, LeBron James. However, JJ Redick, the newly minted head coach of The Purple and Gold, believes he has a lot to offer. Speaking to Sirius XM Radio recently, the 40-year-old broke down, in no vague terms, the kind of player he sees Bronny becoming in the league.
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Redick initially revealed that he had had multiple conversations with James Jr. He explained that he made Bronny’s role on the Lakers very clear to him during their conversation, including how he will be expected to perform on defense.
“What we’re looking for, is defensive ball pressure. I told him [Bronny] this yesterday. I said, ‘I don’t care if you have 10 fouls, I don’t care if you get blown by. What I do care about, is if you’re on the ball, or if you’re three feet off the ball. Like, you have to be a guy that’s a ball hawk at all times’.”
J.J. then praised Bronny a little, highlighting what he had already, and how he could make an impact for the Lakers.
“We’re going to develop his shot, we’re going to develop his ball skills. He’s already got a great feel. He has a really good instinctive nature on the defensive end. I thought the third game of the Cali Classic, he made 8 or 9 really good defensive plays.”
The Lakers head coach then got to who he thinks Bronny James can eventually be. Redick revealed that he was recently at the exhibition game between Team USA and Team Canada. During this contest, Redick admitted that he especially liked Luguentz Dort’s play, and how LeBron’s son could develop into the same type of player.
“We were at the Canada-USA basketball exhibition game… And I said, ‘I think Lu Dort [Luguentz Dort] just single-handedly broke up the eighth possession of the game. Like his impact, you can’t get into your offense sometimes, the shot clock winds down because of his ball pressure. He literally blows up entire plays because of his pressure. And I really believe this, Bronny eventually will be that guy.
“[Lou Dort’s] impact – you can’t get into your offense sometimes. The shot clock winds down because of his ball pressure…Bronny eventually will be that guy”
JJ Redick wants to see Bronny James focus on defense as he talks with @TermineRadio, Ryan McDonough, and @Jumpshot8. pic.twitter.com/hJ28D3J1Qp
— SiriusXM NBA Radio (@SiriusXMNBA) July 13, 2024
One of the best defensive specialists in the NBA right now is Lu Dort, so, if Bronny James can eventually be that caliber of a player on defense, he would guarantee himself a long career in the league.
That said, Dort’s game hardly ends there. He has also shot a blazing-hot 39% from three-point range for his career, making him one of the best three-and-d specialists around. And unfortunately for him and the Lakers, Bronny hasn’t seemed to show this side of him just yet.
Bronny James has been struggling on offense so far
As the NBA Summer League is on, Bronny’s troubles on the offensive end of the floor have only accentuated further. Of course, he infamously scored just 4 on 2 of 9 shooting against the Sacramento Kings.
Unfortunately, he could not follow it up with better shooting nights, scoring just 3 points (1/3 shooting) against the Miami Heat, and 8 points (3/14 shooting) against the Houston Rockets.
To be fair to the 19-year-old, his defense is looking a lot better. For example, he recorded a very impressive 2 steals, and 3 blocks. And while this was his best display on this end of the floor, other performances have not been far off either.
Still, offense is an important part of the equation. So, while he does have time on his hands, he does need to prove that he has a jump shot that can make an impact on this level of the game. If not, his run-time with the Lakers could be deeply limited this season.
