JJ Redick and Luka Doncic hailed Bronny James’ progress after LeBron James’ eldest son played a crucial role for the Lakers in Wednesday’s 137-130 win. Bronny played 13 minutes, scoring four points and making four steals. He also had a rebound and an assist. The Lakers were shorthanded, missing Marcus Smart and Rui Hachimura, who are both playing significant rotation minutes.
It opened up minutes for the likes of Bronny, Jarred Vanderbilt and Maxi Kleber. Bronny was the only G League-level player in action as Kobe Bufkin, Dalton Knecht and Drew Timme collected DNPs. He didn’t disappoint as he made some huge plays in the fourth, including a jumper, which stood out for Redick and Doncic.
“I thought the Bronny’s jumper was big to kind of settle us,” Redick said on Bronny hitting a midrange shot amid a Pacers run with 3:50 left.
Doncic called it the “most important” shot, while hailing Bronny’s leap from last year.
“Definitely a big improvement from last year. I saw him in training camp, he was doing some stuff that I was really impressed with. He did a great job today. Big game for him, that pull-up 2, it was a big bucket. It was one of the most important shots of the game.”
JJ Redick says Lakers needed Bronny James against Pacers
Bronny James has been riding high on confidence. JJ Redick has seen it over the past few weeks and decided to give him meaningful minutes in a must-win game on the road against the Pacers. Redick believed the Lakers needed his athleticism and defense against the young Pacers group, which bothered Los Angeles.
“Felt like this was a game where we needed him,” Redick told reporters. His athleticism, his defense, He had two really, really good defensive possessions. … He’s got a lot of confidence right now, you know, he didn’t make his 3 tonight, but he’s got a lot of confidence in his shot right now. He’s having a fantastic season with South Bay. He’s arguably been the best player in the last three or four weeks in our stay ready games.”
The Lakers’ rotation is set for the playoffs, with Redick only going as deep as nine players, with Luke Kennard, Jaxson Hayes, Jake LaRavia and Rui Hachimura being the most used players off the bench. However, having a confident and athletic player like Bronny James at the end of the bench is always a bonus in certain matchups.
