It was a great story on opening night, LeBron James and son Bronny James making history as the first father-son duo ever to take an NBA court together.
However, that’s not going to be the norm.
What is expected more this season is Bronny in the G-League, where he can get the run to develop his game to an NBA level. That will start once the Lakers return from their upcoming five-game road trip, reports Shams Charania and Dave McMenamin of ESPN.
The Lakers return from their road trip on Nov. 6, and the South Bay Lakers (the Lakers’ G-League affiliate) start their season at home on Nov. 9 against Salt Lake. For the rest of the season, Bronny is expected to move between the big club and the G-League affiliate (they both practice at the same facility in Los Angeles).
One thing Bronny’s agent, Rich Paul, was able to secure for his young player — and something very rare for a No. 55 pick — is a regular NBA contract, not a two-way deal. Bronny is making NBA money for the next couple of years.
For the next couple of weeks, Bronny will be with the big club and could get some minutes in the next five games, particularly some garbage time minutes if the Lakers can blow out teams such as Detroit or Toronto. However, his run will be very limited in games that matter to the Lakers.
Bronny has work to do to get his shot, handle, and offensive decision-making up to an NBA level, and the best way to do that is a combination of focused practices and plenty of game action — something he can get in the G-League. He has NBA potential, now comes the work — out of the spotlight — to make that a reality.
