Bronny James Jr.’s initial in-game returns through four preseason appearances? Not exactly lighting up the stat sheet, folks. The young guard has gone a shaky 4-of-15 from the floor, including a tough 1-of-7 from beyond the arc. Add in his 13 assists against 12 turnovers, and yeah, those numbers are screaming for some improvement.
Coach Redick Sees the Struggle, But Offers Context
Lakers head coach JJ Redick totally acknowledged James’s struggles, no sugarcoating it. After Tuesday’s loss to the Golden State Warriors, Redick told reporters, “I don’t think he’s played well in the four preseason games.” That’s the cold, hard truth. But Redick wasn’t just throwing him under the bus. He gave some crucial context, too, saying James “had a really nice September and a good summer with us” and has been having “good practices.” So what’s going on on the court? Redick thinks some of it is just rhythm, and a big part is “who he’s playing with.” He pointed out that James has played a lot of minutes with “two-way guys” and even Rafael Castro, who’s only been with the team for three days. Redick feels that specific group isn’t “necessarily setting him up for success.”
Bench Backcourt Woes Beyond James
It wasn’t just James struggling in that Tuesday night defeat against the Warriors. Bronny didn’t score at all, going 0-of-2 from the field and coughing up four turnovers with zero assists. But his fellow backend bench guards, Jaden Hardy and Chris Mañon, also had a tough night. Hardy scored 10 points on 3-of-9 shooting, including 1-of-6 from deep, with two assists and three turnovers. Mañon added five points on a perfect 2-of-2 shooting, but he logged one assist to four turnovers. These collective struggles from the bench guards led to a dismal 26 total points in the second half for the Lakers offensively. Redick straight up recognized the poor performance, but he wasn’t about to dump all the blame on them.
The Regular Season Need Is Real
Here’s the kicker: Redick knows these guys,James, Hardy, Mañon,are gonna be absolutely essential when the regular season hits and injuries inevitably strike the primary backcourt members. He laid it out plain: “The reality is, again, if one of our three primary handlers are out, one of those guys…one of those guys is going to play.” He explained that it’s “too taxing with full-court pressure for [Reaves] and [Luka] to just do that solely.” So, while the preseason numbers aren’t pretty, the intent is there from the players. Redick also took some responsibility himself, saying he needs to “look at what I can do better with that too” to help simplify the game for them. The Lakers coaching staff has to find a way to get these young guys ready, because they’re going to need them to step up when it counts.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Silver Screen and Roll.
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