Breaking news:I was wrong. Drafting Bronny James was a win for the Lakers :see more:

He has made 17 baskets.

He has played in the equivalent of less than three full games.

Seventeen Lakers have spent more time on the court. Sixteen Lakers have scored more points.

He has been but a speck of lint on the Lakers’ lapel, a bit of dust at the end of the Lakers’ bench, a small and irrelevant bystander in the Lakers’ long and arduous journey.

Yet, admit it, Bronny James has been huge.

The nepo baby whose arrival last summer was ripped across the NBA landscape has quietly risen above the criticism and gradually drowned out the noise.

The famous son whose selection as the 55th pick in the 2024 NBA draft was trashed in this space as “not very smart” has actually become part of something that borders on ingenious.

I was wrong. I was very wrong. There have been few things more right about this season than the saga of Bronny James.

He hasn’t made an NBA impact, but he hasn’t been a distraction, either. Arguably the league’s most disliked and discounted rookie when the season began, he has won over fans, impressed teammates, inspired his father, and silenced the media.

He hasn’t made an NBA impact, but he hasn’t been a distraction, either. Arguably the league’s most disliked and discounted rookie when the season began, he has won over fans, impressed teammates, inspired his father, and silenced the media.
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I was wrong. Drafting Bronny James was a win for the Lakers
Lakers guard Bronny James, right, drives to the hoop against Bucks guard AJ Green, left, during a game on March 20.
Lakers guard Bronny James drives to the hoop against Bucks guard AJ Green during the first half of a game at Crypto.com Arena last month. The rookie son of LeBron James had a season-high 17 points in a loss.(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

By Bill Plaschke
Columnist
Follow
April 6, 2025 3 AM PT

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42
He has made 17 baskets.

He has played in the equivalent of less than three full games.

Seventeen Lakers have spent more time on the court. Sixteen Lakers have scored more points.

He has been but a speck of lint on the Lakers’ lapel, a bit of dust at the end of the Lakers’ bench, a small and irrelevant bystander in the Lakers’ long and arduous journey.

Yet, admit it, Bronny James has been huge.

The nepo baby whose arrival last summer was ripped across the NBA landscape has quietly risen above the criticism and gradually drowned out the noise.

ADVERTISEMENT

Lakers forward LeBron James, center, gets a high-five from his son, rookie guard Bronny James, right, during introductions.
Lakers forward LeBron James gets a high-five from his son, rookie guard Bronny James, during introductions before a game against the Pelicans at Crypto.com Arena last month. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
The famous son whose selection as the 55th pick in the 2024 NBA draft was trashed in this space as “not very smart” has actually become part of something that borders on ingenious.

I was wrong. I was very wrong. There have been few things more right about this season than the saga of Bronny James.

He hasn’t made an NBA impact, but he hasn’t been a distraction, either. Arguably the league’s most disliked and discounted rookie when the season began, he has won over fans, impressed teammates, inspired his father, and silenced the media.

ADVERTISEMENT

Shut me up, anyway.

Ten months ago, when the Lakers acquired the oldest son of their best player, I wrote that the move was an insensitive joke.

Ten months ago, I had the hottest of hot takes.

“It’s not very smart,” I wrote. “And, for two of the main people involved, it’s not very fair.”

concluded my screed with, “Bronny is coming … the circus is starting.”

Turns out, the circus never arrived. The reality is, in one of its finest efforts, the Lakers’ management handled the sensitive situation with nimble smarts.

Everything about this strange arrangement has worked, every fear has been squelched, all awkwardness has disappeared, and the Lakers have been left with a happily productive father and a gratefully improving son.

Bronny James has been their most improved player simply by morphing from a punch line into, well, a player.

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LOG IN
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Bill Plaschke
Lakers
I was wrong. Drafting Bronny James was a win for the Lakers
Lakers guard Bronny James, right, drives to the hoop against Bucks guard AJ Green, left, during a game on March 20.
Lakers guard Bronny James drives to the hoop against Bucks guard AJ Green during the first half of a game at Crypto.com Arena last month. The rookie son of LeBron James had a season-high 17 points in a loss.(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

By Bill Plaschke
Columnist
Follow
April 6, 2025 3 AM PT

Share

42
He has made 17 baskets.

He has played in the equivalent of less than three full games.

Seventeen Lakers have spent more time on the court. Sixteen Lakers have scored more points.

He has been but a speck of lint on the Lakers’ lapel, a bit of dust at the end of the Lakers’ bench, a small and irrelevant bystander in the Lakers’ long and arduous journey.

Yet, admit it, Bronny James has been huge.

The nepo baby whose arrival last summer was ripped across the NBA landscape has quietly risen above the criticism and gradually drowned out the noise.

ADVERTISEMENT

Lakers forward LeBron James, center, gets a high-five from his son, rookie guard Bronny James, right, during introductions.
Lakers forward LeBron James gets a high-five from his son, rookie guard Bronny James, during introductions before a game against the Pelicans at Crypto.com Arena last month. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
The famous son whose selection as the 55th pick in the 2024 NBA draft was trashed in this space as “not very smart” has actually become part of something that borders on ingenious.

I was wrong. I was very wrong. There have been few things more right about this season than the saga of Bronny James.

He hasn’t made an NBA impact, but he hasn’t been a distraction, either. Arguably the league’s most disliked and discounted rookie when the season began, he has won over fans, impressed teammates, inspired his father, and silenced the media.

ADVERTISEMENT

Shut me up, anyway.

Ten months ago, when the Lakers acquired the oldest son of their best player, I wrote that the move was an insensitive joke.

Ten months ago, I had the hottest of hot takes.

“It’s not very smart,” I wrote. “And, for two of the main people involved, it’s not very fair.”

LeBron James (23) and Bronny James (9) become the first father-son duo to play together in NBA history on March 22, 2024.
LeBron James (23) and Bronny James (9) become the first father-son duo to play together in NBA history on March 22, 2024, when they enter a game against Minnesota. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
I concluded my screed with, “Bronny is coming … the circus is starting.”

Turns out, the circus never arrived. The reality is, in one of its finest efforts, the Lakers’ management handled the sensitive situation with nimble smarts.

Everything about this strange arrangement has worked, every fear has been squelched, all awkwardness has disappeared, and the Lakers have been left with a happily productive father and a gratefully improving son.

Bronny James has been their most improved player simply by morphing from a punch line into, well, a player.

ADVERTISEMENT

“Since Day 1, I’ve just been impressed with the person that he is,” coach JJ Redick told reporters last month. “And to deal with … frankly, bull— because of who his dad is and just keep a level head about it and be a class act says a lot about him, says a lot about that family …”

Maybe it was truly cool with Redick from Day 1, but for the rest of the league, Bronny’s arrival raised a giant red flag. After all, this was a 19-year-old kid who missed most of his only college season while recovering from a heart attack, and suddenly he was given a Lakers uniform and a guaranteed contract?