While the story of Bronny James isn’t as heightened now compared to about a year ago, the son and teammate of LeBron James on the Los Angeles Lakers remains a major talking point surrounding the franchise.
The 55th pick in the 2024 NBA Draft is still slowly developing, yet to get consistent playing time in his first season under Lakers head coach JJ Redick. But while other stars like Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, and James Sr. have been sidelined in early preseason games, Bronny James has been given a bigger role.
In Los Angeles’ second preseason game against the Golden State Warriors, James had a one-handed putback dunk that caught the attention of many online.
James’ dunk was the highlight of his performance against the Warriors. He finished with just five points on two of six shooting, with three rebounds, three assists, and a game-high five turnovers. The Lakers lost 111-103 to start their preseason campaign 0-2 in 2025.
Bronny James’ Preseason Struggles
With Los Angeles sitting their stars in the first two preseason games, James has been given more playing time under Redick to see how he sits alongside their new additions.
In the Lakers‘ first preseason game against the Phoenix Suns, James played 24 minutes while finishing with eight points on 1/12 shooting with five rebounds and two assists. Los Angeles lost the game by more than 20 points, but James said he was comfortable with the shots he took.
“I felt like they were pretty good shots,” he said after the game. “Not rushed, not forcing anything. Didn’t have my legs under me as much as I wanted to, so a lot of them were short, but most of them were on line. I felt like I could have made those. I felt like I took some good shots.”
Redick told reporters he felt James looked comfortable in a bigger role on the court, and thought the shots didn’t fall, he’s seen growth from the 21-year-old.
“He is so much more comfortable and confident as a player,” Redick said. “He’s a totally different player than he was a year ago. I thought the stuff that he did down in the G League last year was huge for him in developing a comfort level in playing at this level.”
In the Lakers‘ second preseason game against Golden State, James held a similar role, playing a similar number of minutes. He took fewer shots and had more turnovers, but his viral putback dunk was the highlight of the night.
The Lakers were down all night to the Warriors, and a fourth-quarter comeback wasn’t enough to grab the win. Though he’s getting decent playing time, James is still slowly developing as an impactful player for L.A.
Lakers’ Roster Questions
James is just one of many players on this current Lakers roster who face questions about their roles on the team heading into the 2025-26 NBA season.
Another player in a similar position is Gabe Vincent, who sat out of the team’s first preseason game. Against Golden State, however, Vincent had 16 points and five assists while starting at point guard. He and James are battling for the same backup playmaking guard role behind Doncic and Reaves, and so far, Vincent is winning the battle.
Writing for LakeShowLife, Svyatoslav Rovenchuk said that Vincent nearly has the backup role locked up over James.
“(Vincent) is exactly the kind of stability that a team wants out of their backup point guard,” he wrote. “There is still time for James to turn things around and render this assessment premature. However, for a team wishing to pursue a championship in 2025-26, Vincent is the much safer option off the bench.”
Jarred Vanderbilt remains a question for the Lakers this season, but through two preseason games, he has proven to be valuable on this roster. He finished with nine points, seven rebounds, four assists, and three steals in the loss to the Warriors.
“Having that sort of defensive stopper would patch a major hole among the starters in Los Angeles,“ Rovenchuk wrote about Vanderbilt, while also citing his recent offensive struggles.
Deandre Ayton is another player who holds big expectations for this upcoming season. Ayton knows the responsibility he holds, and takes it in stride as he looks to use this season as a bounce-back for his career.
The future of a player like James remains relatively unknown as he continues to develop, but the rest of the Lakers’ new additions and returning players have proved valuable through their two preseason losses.
Like Heavy Sports’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
The post Bronny James Has Viral Moment Amid Lakers Preseason Struggles appeared first on Heavy Sports.