Los Angeles Lakers guard Bronny James had one of the most-talked about NBA rookie seasons in recent memory.
A second-round pick of the Lakers last summer — a decision that was highly criticized because of nepotism accusations that many fans believe landed him in L.A. in the first place thanks to his father, LeBron James — Bronny split his time between the NBA and the South Bay Lakers of the G League.
And while Bronny will likely always be in the shadow of his famous father, that doesn’t mean he doesn’t still have potential to develop into a solid or above-average NBA player.
In fact, there’s some who believe that Bronny has all the makings of a potential future star, including Golden State Warriors point guard Steph Curry.
In a recent interview with Complex, Curry recalled a time during his rookie season back in 2009 when he spent some time at LeBron’s house when he was still with the Cleveland Cavaliers, and he walked away overly impressed by what he saw from a much younger Bronny.
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“I remember how athletic Bronny looked, and how fast he ran, I was like, ‘He going somewhere,'” Curry said of a then-4-year-old Bronny. “And now to see him in the league is crazy.”
Bronny finished his rookie year averaging 2.3 points, 0.8 assists, 0.7 rebounds, and 0.3 steals per game over 27 NBA contests. He played just 6.7 minutes per night.
However, he fared much better in his G League stint.
James averaged 21.9 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 5.4 assists per game last season with South Bay while shooting 51% from the field, 45% from 3-point range, and 88% from the free-throw line, per the official G League X account.
Heading into Year 2, Bronny is expected to see an increased role in L.A.
He showed significant signs of improvement in his second Summer League stint. He was among the NBA‘s list of top five sophomore standouts after averaging 16.3 points, 4.3 assists, and 2.6 rebounds per outing over his three games.