In a league of flashy crossovers and highlight dunks, its not often that a layup gets the crowd on its feet. Especially to applaud an opposing team’s player. But that’s exactly what happened last night in Washington after Bronny James made a tough And-1 bucket through contact over Wizards big man Tristan Vukcevic. Well, it was a moment of redemption for the rookie, coming off an embarrassing scoreless night against the Sixers on Tuesday. But how did Bronny suddenly get the confidence to attack the rim so aggressively?

Turns out, some wise words from teammate Shake Milton might have done the trick, as JJ Redick revealed postgame, “Late game, Shake was really encouraging him to play on the ball and be aggressive and it led to some good stuff for us.” Even the shooting guard confirmed his role in helping Bronny, “I just felt like you know when I was a two-way, back then, my vets were telling me to do the same thing… Yeah man. You get up here, you get the opportunity. You gotta go. You gotta be aggressive.”

Yes, Shake was once in Bronny’s shoes as he was also doing double duty in the NBA and the G League. And him staying aggressive and ready for the moment has earned him a permanent spot on the Lakers main roster. Now, he is helping his rookies achieve the same. Well, the advice helped, as Bronny had a much better showing than the previous game, finishing with 5 points, two rebounds, and two assists. Moreover, it came in a blowout win against the Wizards.

Of course, this is not the first time Shake has had this conversation with the rookie, “I told him that in the last game in Philly when he went in… I just told him to be aggressive man. You get your opportunity and you go make it happen.” Unfortunately, the 20-year-old struggled regardless and went scoreless. But last night, he was able to impress everyone, including his head coach.

JJ Redick reminded of his Rookie Year while addressing Massive Pressure on Bronny James

“He didn’t play well… I have confidence in him but obviously didn’t provide that at a high level.” JJ was not pleased with Bronny’s performance on Tuesday. While he trusted the rookie to provide the team some energy in the first quarter, James made several mistakes and got subbed out minutes later. However, Redick’s disappointment did not last long as he had high praise for the rookie last night, “He did a lot of really good things tonight… Defensively he was great. Again, it’s you know building blocks for every young player and I think tonight was a good positive building block for him.”

Obviously, JJ understands that Bronny is no ordinary rookie. Despite being a late second-round pick, he attracts more eyeballs than most lottery picks and that puts added pressure on the kid when he is on the court. And JJ understands the feeling well, “I remember not playing a lot in my rookie year, my second year, and the Orlando fans would sometimes chant that in a blowout in a fourth quarter ‘We want JJ.’ It’s a weird feeling.” However, he has faith in Bronny to overcome these challenges and become a bright young player, “He’s had eyeballs on him his whole life. So, he’s used to it… He has handled everything with obvious dignity, grace, class, all that stuff. And he’ll continue to grow. Very excited for him.”

Well, Bronny is doing wonders in the G League as he is putting up one impressive performance after another. Just last week, he scored a career-high 31 points against the Rip City Remix along with some highlight dunks. And last night, he showed that he can go toe to toe against NBA talent as well. Hopefully, this growth will continue and the world will see more amazing performances from the young rookie in the future.