Bronny James finally walked onto the NBA arena alongside his dad, LeBron James. The Lakers’ second preseason game against the Phoenix Suns saw the realization of the highly anticipated historical moment. However, the results weren’t exactly what JJ Redick might have hoped for. With the Suns winning 118-114, this is the second game in a row when the Purple and Gold would return empty-handed. Nonetheless, Bronny James’ 13 minutes to fame has become the talk of the town. Were you expecting anything less?

However, Bronny James has faced some setbacks. Considering it was only his second game, the 20-year-old deserves some leniency. At the same time, the mountain of expectation keeps growing bigger for James Jr. He played for 13 minutes and had 2 rebounds. Unfortunately, no points were registered to his name, and there was only one shot that he could manage to take.

In a post-game press conference, 20-year-old Bronny James spoke to the media and addressed questions about improving his shooting ability. The rookie honestly responded, acknowledging that a bit of self-criticism is necessary to address his shortcomings. “Shooting ability … only shot one shot, so there’s not much to say about that. But yeah, just again trying to find my role and play as hard as I can on the defense,” replied Bronny. The former USC point guard is focusing on the defensive role for JJ Redick & Co. With just 1-of-6 shots from the field against the Timberwolves, it is clear that he has lots of work to do offensively. So, the once 36.6% FGP holder for USC must step up his game.

Meanwhile, Lakers HC, JJ Redick has some mantras for LeBron James’ son. He seems to have complete faith in the jersey #9 holder. Despite Bronny’s shooting woes, his defensive game has been impressive. Hence, the hopes of him turning into the next big name in the NBA are still bright. The eldest son of the James household has made his family proud, but, there is more to come from his side for sure.

“He can do some things defensively” – Bronny James has JJ Redick’s confidence

There are no secrets when it comes to JJ Redick‘s vision with the rookies. Had there been doubts, he would’ve brought out LeBron and AD on the first game itself. But that wasn’t the case—the former Mavericks three-point specialist entrusted the team’s responsibilities to the rookies and second-year players. Despite the unfavorable results against the Minnesota Timberwolves, they showed potential.

Meanwhile, Redick has a message for Bronny James: “He can do some things defensively at his size that are really unique, and I think can turn into a really disruptive defender.” These preseason games could be the true playing ground for young James. Why? Bronny James could show his true colors as a defensive player; well, it’s not that he hasn’t already! The 20YO had his moments of wow during the game against the T-Wolves where he played for a solid 16 minutes. In those few minutes, Bronny James had three blocked shots, including a chase-down block in transition.

Well, it’s not hard to guess that Papa James must have been extremely proud to watch his son from the sideline. And not just that, Bronny was impressive in his role as a shooting guard. However, James Jr. has to work on his offensive game to make him an all-rounder on the hardwood floor. He is the next-generation star and the heir to LeBron James’ legacy. Moreover, as JJ Redick said, Bronny is easy to coach. Therefore we can hope to see him turn into an even lethal player as the season rolls out.

But, given the two consecutive setbacks the Los Angeles Lakers faced in the first two games, can they bounce back? Well, we somewhat saw this coming, didn’t we? With a new coach and a new game plan, these results were kind of inevitable. At the same time, surely JJ Redick wouldn’t want these results to repeat themselves once the regular season rolls in. So, with high anticipation and scopes of improvement not just Bronny James but the entire Lakers team are moving ahead. Let’s see what awaits them next.