JJ Redick sets expectation for Bronny James on defense

All eyes have been on Bronny James through his first two summer league games with the Los Angeles Lakers. During the Lakers’ matchup against the Houston Rockets at the Las Vegas Summer League on Friday, Lakers head coach JJ Redick evaluated James’ performances, thus far.

“I thought the last game of the [California] Classic, defensively, he was terrific,” Redick said. “He had eight or nine possessions where, whether it was ball pressure or switching, just making plays defensively, that’s been a real point of emphasis in all my conversations in the times I have been with the team on the practice floor.

“We want him pressuring the ball. I told him yesterday, ‘If you get blown by and have 10 fouls, that’s on me. I want you up and pressuring the ball.'”

In the Lakers’ 80-76 loss to the Miami Heat in the California Classic, James tallied three points, five rebounds, two assists, two steals and three blocks. In the team’s loss against the Rockets, James notched eight points, five rebounds and two steals.

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 Bronny 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.”