JJ Redick: Bronny James is 'case study No. 1' dealing with pressure, expectations

Every time Bronny James steps on the court, he faces pressure. During the Lakers’ matchup against the Houston Rockets at the Las Vegas Summer League on Friday, Lakers head coach JJ Redick weighed in on the lofty expectations James routinely faces.

“You just have to let go of outcomes, and you have to just enjoy the process of being in the NBA, getting better,” Redick said. “We’re placing a heavy emphasis on our player development as we build this program.

“He’s obviously case study No. 1. He’s going to be a big part of what we do in our player development program. We’re going to invest heavily in him. He’s got to fall in love with that process and let go of outcomes.”

The Lakers selected James with the No. 55 overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft. In just one season at USC, James averaged 4.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.1 assists in his 19.4 minutes per game. In his lone campaign with the Trojans, James made six starts and scored double figures on three occasions.

James’ debut at USC was delayed after he suffered cardiac arrest in the summer ahead of the 2023-24 season. He finished the season at USC shooting 36.6% from the floor and 26.7% from beyond the arc.

Redick believes James could become an elite defender at the NBA level. However, he noted it’s important to remember the obstacles James faced early in his collegiate career before harshly criticizing him.

“What I’d like to see is a lot of ball pressure,” Redick said. “We were at the Canada-USA exhibition and — obviously I’m not comparing Bronny at 19 to Lu Dort, who’s an all NBA defender — but you watch that game and Lu Dort or Jrue Holiday, there’s eight or nine possessions a game where they just completely take the offense out of what they’re trying to do because of their disruptiveness.

“He had a heart procedure last year, up and down freshman year obviously. Going through the pre-draft process, there’s a there’s a conditioning element to being able to play that way defensively. But overall, we like what we’ve seen in practice. We like what we’ve seen in the summer league.”

In his first two summer league games with the Lakers, James tallied a combined seven points, seven rebounds, five assists, three steals and three blocks while shooting 3-12 from the field and 0-3 from beyond the arc.

Bronny James will look to add to these totals on Friday evening as the Lakers go head-to-head with the Rockets. Tune into ESPN to watch the Las Vegas Summer League showdown.