Bronny James struggled badly as he was torched by Tyrese Maxey any time they were remotely matched up during the Los Angeles Lakers’ 118-104 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday night.
His box score wasn’t any better: Bronny was scoreless for the Lakers, missed three three-pointers, all five of his shots overall and had three turnovers. Bronny had looked like he had been coming into some form: he played 15 minutes for the Lakers just four days after he dropped a career-high 31 points for the South Bay Lakers of the G League.
“Maybe put him in a tough spot, flying out yesterday, nationally televised game and all that stuff,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said. “He didn’t play well. But he’s been playing great in the stay-ready games and he’s been playing great in the G. I have confidence but obviously didn’t provide that at a high level.”
His father and teammate knows Bronny still has plenty to learn in the NBA. “He was able to get behind the defense on one and find Jaxson [Hayes] for a dunk. That was good,” LeBron James said. “Obviously missed his shots. It’s just about him just getting more and more comfortable. It’s his first extensive minutes with us. We had that first game where it was just a moment, and it was a great moment, but tonight was his first opportunity to be with the big guys, the big club. He’s going to continue to use that to get better and better, just like the first time he played with the G League.”
LeBron and Bronny made NBA history on 22 October when they became the first father and son to play together, during the Lakers’ season-opening win over Minnesota. Bronny then scored his first NBA basket for the Lakers in Cleveland on 30 October at the arena where he watched his father as a child.
Bronny had not played more than six minutes in any of his first 12 games and had scored four points all season. “Just bringing energy. My coaches are telling me to come in and play smart, play my game and play for my teammates,” he said. “Just trying to do the right thing as a rookie is my main priority.”
LeBron and the Lakers have already said Bronny will spend ample time this season with their G League affiliate as he works on his game. “Just reps is the biggest thing for me,” Bronny said.
LeBron had 31 points, nine assists and eight rebounds, though father and son did share one other distinction against the 76ers: Adem Bona blocked them both.
The Lakers had been 16-2 this season against teams with losing records and seemed poised to build on the win column playing a 76ers team without injured stars Joel Embiid and Paul George. Maxey carried the scoring load with 43 points and the Lakers were hampered when Anthony Davis left in the first half with an abdominal muscle strain.
“I mean, when our best player goes out, it’s always challenging,” LeBron said. “When AD goes down, when any one of our guys go down throughout the course of the game, it’s just tough.”
Without Davis, it was a rough game for the Lakers, who had a four-game winning streak snapped. “Three in four nights, back-to-back, I’m not sure where our collective brains were at,” Redick said.