Lakers Announce Bronny James News on Wednesday

Between the regular season and Tip-Off Tournament, James averaged 18.6 points with South Bay, adding 4.5 rebounds and 4.8 assists while making 41.5% of his field goal attempts (via G League stats). This NBA preseason projected to be a big one for James as he vied for rotation minutes, but a setback was shared by the team on Wednesday via head coach JJ Redick.

Speaking with reporters prior to LA's preseason contest against the Dallas Mavericks, Redick announced James suffered an ankle sprain in a loss to the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday.

"Bronny has a little bit of an ankle sprain that he had in the second half last night," Redick told reporters (via Lakers PR). "So he won't be available tonight."

James played 22 minutes in the loss to Phoenix, tallying seven points, four rebounds, two assists, one steal and one block. He made three of his eight field goal attempts and missed both of his 3-point attempts. On the preseason, James has made four appearances and is averaging 6.8 points in 21.3 minutes per game. His shooting remains a concern, as he has shot 7-for-28 (25%) from the field and 2-for-13 (15.4%) from 3-point range.

This is not the first injury James has dealt with in his NBA career. The 21-year-old missed time last season with a left heel contusion. An illness also landed him on the inactive list for a stretch of games during his rookie year.

Unless this ankle sprain is a multi-game injury, James will have just one more opportunity to make a strong impression on the coaching staff before his second NBA season begins. The Lakers will conclude their preseason against the Sacramento Kings on Friday before opening their regular season against the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday.