The Lakers faced the Clippers on Monday night, in the final game on July 14. While both sides feature talented youngsters, the most prominent young star in this game was Bronny James, the son of Lakers' reportedly disgruntled superstar LeBron James. The Lakers unfortunately, lost this game 58-67 but had a silver lining in their superstar's son.
Bronny James had a strong start to the game as he scored 12 points in the first half. He did not miss a single shot in the first half as he made all four of his attempts, including two three-pointers.
In the second half, he cooled down a bit, making two of his six attempts from the field and one of two from beyond the three-point arc. He led all scorers and finished the game with 17 points, five rebounds, and five assists while being +5 on the plus-minus rating.
His shooting numbers for the game added up to be six of 10 shots from the floor (60%) and three of five from beyond the arc (60%), which means this was an incredibly efficient night for James despite the loss.
This impressive performance had NBA fans going gaga over Bronny. They seemed to believe that this game indicates his potential to make a name for his own besides his association with his father, LeBron James. NBA fans took to social media and expressed their opinions on Bronny's performance against the Clippers.
"Kind of reminds me of a young Westbrook with a better jumper."
"As an original Bronny hater, he 100% has a future in the NBA. No longer am I a Bronny hater."
"Bronny’s been held to LeBron standards since day one, but now that he’s actually hooping. The kid is building his own."
"Bronny might have a deeper bag than LeBron, and I’m not even joking."
"If he keeps on this trajectory, he could easily carve out a solid career in the league."
"He’s really productive, hopefully he gets good minutes regular season."
Bronny James is doing the grind that it takes to make a name for himself, separate from what his father accomplished in the NBA. If he keeps up like this, he could become a regular rotation player for the Lakers even after his father retires.
Cole Swider, who has been the leading scorer for the Lakers in the Summer League, also had an impressive game. He finished the game with 16 points, five rebounds, and three steals.
The only other player on a professional contract with this team, Dalton Knecht, struggled in the game quite a bit. He ended up with only eight points, seven rebounds, two assists, and one steal, while having a -13 plus-minus rating. He made only three of his 15 shots from the floor, which included only one three-point shot in eight attempts.
For the Clippers, Jordan Miller led all scorers with 19 points, seven rebounds, two assists, and two steals in the game. The Clippers are now 2-1 in the Summer League, and the Lakers are 1-2. The Clippers move on to face the Nuggets on July 17, while the Lakers will face the Celtics next on the same day.
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