Bronny James is expected to remain with the Los Angeles Lakers during their upcoming five-game road trip. After that, however, the rookie will begin splitting time between the Lakers’ active roster and the team’s G League affiliate. reports Shams Charania of ESPN.
James played three minutes in the Lakers’ season opener on Tuesday, giving fans and media what they wanted to see when speaking with his father, LeBron James. He shot 0 for 2 from the floor, including 0 for 1 from 3-point range, and grabbed one rebound.
The Lakers have two more home games, Friday against the Phoenix Suns and Saturday against the Sacramento Kings, before opening their road trip Monday in Phoenix. The five-game stretch from October 28 to November 6 includes a game against the Cleveland Cavaliers, which should be a special moment for the James family.
LeBron James played 11 total seasons with his hometown Cavaliers in two separate stints. He was the number 1 overall pick in the 2003 NBA Draft outside St. Vincent-St. Mary High School in Akron, Ohio. With the Cavs, LeBron won Rookie of the Year honors, two NBA MVP awards and the 2015-16 NBA Championship. Bronny was born in 2004, just before LeBron’s second season in Cleveland.
After being selected in the second round (No. 55 overall) of the 2024 NBA Draft, Bronny signed a four-year, $7.9 million contract with the Lakers. However, his agent Rich Paul negotiated a standard deal, not the two-way contract that prospects who split time between the NBA and G League typically play under.
However, there was always an understanding that playing in the G League with the team’s South Bay affiliate would be part of his development, according to ESPN. LeBron acknowledged the likelihood while speaking to reporters at media day, emphasizing that the Lakers and South Bay are part of the same team.
“Your job is to push yourself and get better and better, just like the rest of us,” LeBron said. via ESPN. “And we want to hold him accountable, and he’ll hold us accountable. And if we all do that, we’ll all get better, because we’re all one team. We’re a reflection of the South Bay; the South Bay is a reflection of us.”
