TL;DR
- Bronny James Jr. has been assigned to the South Bay Lakers by the Los Angeles Lakers.
- This is not the first time James has been sent to the G-League this season.
- James has not shown enough progress to be a role player for the Lakers.
- The Lakers hope this G-League stint will help James advance and secure a position.
Bronny James' NBA career has been a whirlwind thus far.
In one instant, the 21-year-old Los Angeles Lakers player is scoring 17 points against Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks, and in the following moment, he's not playing at all in the major league games.
James' turbulent season persisted on Saturday as the Lakers initiated a fresh roster move focused on the USC alumnus.
“Lakers have assigned guard Bronny James Jr. To the South Bay Lakers,” LakersNation’s Daniel Starkand reported on X/Twitter.
This isn’t the first time James has been assigned to South Bay this season.
Prior to South Bay's matchup with The Santa Cruz Warriors on November 21st, the Lakers opted to assign the 6-foot-2 guard to the NBA's developmental circuit.
The announcement, while unexpected, wasn’t overly challenging to process.
James hasn’t made the progress necessary to be deemed a viable role player on JJ Redick’s contending Western Conference squad (he’s averaging 1.9 points while shooting below 35% from the field and from three), making a G-League visit beneficial for all parties involved.
Nonetheless, the Lakers opted to bring James back four days afterward, affording him a brief period to grow with South Bay.
It is hoped that this time, Los Angeles will make the correct decision and grant their 2024 55th overall selection an extended chance to advance in the G-League and move nearer to securing a distinct position with the prominent team.
More NBA: Warriors announce Stephen Curry's injury replacement