Source: Broney Lakers, to move into G League

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — Los Angeles Lakers rookie Bronie James is expected to travel on the team's upcoming road trip from Oct. 28-Nov. 6 and then begin shuttling between the active roster and the franchise's South Bay G League affiliate, sources told ESPN on Friday.

When the Lakers beat the Minnesota Timberwolves in Tuesday's season opener, LeBron James and Brony James made history by becoming the first father-son duo to play together in an NBA game. LA then faces the Phoenix Suns at Crypto.com Arena on Friday night (ESPN) and then hosts the Sacramento Kings on Saturday before traveling to Phoenix, Cleveland, Toronto, Detroit and Memphis.

LeBron, of course, spent 11 of his first 21 years in the league with the Cavaliers. He was about to begin his second season with the Cavs when Broney was born, Oct. 6, 2004, in Akron, Ohio, making for a momentous occasion when James returned there the following Wednesday.

The G League draft is Saturday and the team's training camp runs through Nov. 7.

As Bronie James and his representative, Clutch Sports CEO Rich Paul, discussed the development with NBA teams throughout his predraft process, sources told ESPN that the G League concept has been welcomed. Those sources said Paul advocated for a standard deal — not a two-way deal — during the predraft that he and Broney, selected by L.A. with the No. 55 pick in the second round, were fully aware and open to development. process

When LeBron made his first comments about Brony's rookie season plans at media day last month, he talked about how the Lakers are in sync with their G League affiliate.

“Just [looking forward to] Watching him grow as a basketball player whether it's with us or on a G League team and he just keeps getting better and better,” LeBron said. “His job is to work and get better like the rest of us. And we want to hold him accountable, and he'll hold us accountable. And if we all do that, we'll all be better off, because we're all one team. We are the epitome of the South Bay; South Bay is a reflection of us.”

It's common for mid- to second-round picks to spend time in the G League, gaining opportunities, coaching, playing repetition and structure in their respective team's programs. During the 2023–24 season, 23 of the 28 players selected in the second round of the 2023 NBA Draft spent time in the G League.

Lakers vice president of basketball operations and general manager Rob Pelinka and coach JJ Redick both discussed creating the right alignment around the Lakers and their South Bay squad.

Redick, who was hired with no prior head-coaching experience in part by selling his vision of establishing an elite player development program for LA, said Brony's trajectory will be his first opportunity to implement his approach.

“For us, prioritizing player development, we look at Broney as a case study because of his base-level feel, athleticism, point-of-attack defender, shooting, passing, there's a lot to like about his game,” Redick said in July. And as we build our player development program holistically, he'll have a great opportunity to become an excellent NBA player.”

The South Bay also has a new coach this season, with LA hiring Jack Guthrie last month to replace Dane Johnson.