Bronny James underwhelms in four-point debut as Lakers lose to Kings at California Classic

James shot 2-of-9 from the field and missed two free throws against the Sacramento Kings

By Sam Quinn Jul 6, 2024 at 7:23 pm ET• 2 min read

Bronny James made his long-awaited NBA debut on Saturday when the Los Angeles Lakers faced off against the Sacramento Kings in the California Classic, a pre-cursor to the league's annual Vegas Summer League, and all things considered, it was a somewhat underwhelming performance. James shot 2-of-9 from the field and missed both of his free throws in a 108-94 loss to the Kings. He finished the game with four points, two assists, two rebounds and a steal.

James, the eldest son of NBA legend LeBron James, struggled for fairly predictable reasons. The biggest question mark about his game as the No. 55 overall pick in last month's draft was his jump shot. His path to success in the NBA, given his limitations as a shot-creator, was always going to come through the 3-and-D role player route. But on Saturday, he attempted five shots outside of the paint and made only one of them. His only conversion inside of the paint came on a layup. His jump shot looked shaky throughout the game.

That doesn't mean there weren't positives. James has a good feel for the game and knows how to play within an offense. He was decisive as a ball-handler, turning this handoff into a quick drive for a layup that gave him his first professional points.

Bronny scores his first bucket with the Lakers at Summer League 🔥

(via @NBA)
pic.twitter.com/Vo4mBFovlN

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) July 6, 2024

In the third quarter, he shook off a defender with a nice behind-the-back dribble and sank a mid-range look.