Lakers’ Bronny James held to four points in NBA Summer League debut

Bronny, the eldest son of Lakers superstar LeBron James, made his first NBA Summer League appearance in the Lakers’ 108-94 loss to the Sacramento Kings on Saturday at the California Classic in San Francisco. James finished with four points, shooting 2-for-9 from the field, 0-for-3 from three and 0-for-2 from the free-throw line, in addition to two assists, two rebounds and one steal in 21 minutes of play.

James was held scoreless in the first quarter, missing his first two shot attempts. He scored his first points at the 5:51 mark of the second quarter on a driving layup to the basket that tied the game 31-31.

Although LeBron James couldn’t attend his son’s first NBA Summer League game as he prepares for the 2024 Paris Olympics with Team USA in Las Vegas, the father of three is still keeping tabs. LeBron James was tuned in to the matchup and commented on James’ first points: “C’mon man that’s tough… Get loose.”

Bronny James was drafted out of USC with the 55th pick in the second round of the NBA draft last week and signed a four-year, $7.9 million rookie deal on Wednesday, the same day LeBron James reached a two-year, $104 million deal with the Lakers. They are the first father-son combo in NBA history to play in the league at the same time.

Although James couldn’t get much going on the offensive end, he highlighted his defensive prowess at times. In the second quarter, James intercepted a pass from Sacramento’s Yves Pons and pushed it up the floor in transition to Blake Hinson, who connected with Kyle Mangas for an easy layup.

The Lakers cut the Kings’ lead to five with 8:37 remaining in the game before Sacramento responded and ended up with a 14-point victory. The Kings collectively shot 61.9% from the field, compared to the Lakers’ 43.2%.

Blake Hinson led the Lakers with 17 points off the bench. Tommy Kuhse was close to a double-double with 15 points and eight assists, while Maxwell Lewis added 14 points. Dalton Knecht, the 17th overall pick of the 2024 NBA Draft, finished with 12 points (3-12 FG, 1-4 3PT).

Sacramento’s Adonis Arms recorded a double-double with 32 points, 11 rebounds, five assists and two steals. Antoine Davis, who knocked down six 3-pointers, had 20 points off the bench and Jordan Ford had 17 points.