Lakers’ Bronny James scores first-ever NBA bucket in Summer League

The Los Angeles Lakers kicked off NBA Summer League against the Sacramento Kings in the California Classic on Saturday, and rookie Bronny James scored his first NBA bucket during the game.

After months of waiting, Lakers fans are fired up for basketball to officially be back as the team kicks off Summer League with the California Classic in San Francisco at Chase Center on Saturday afternoon.

The main attraction of this year’s Summer League roster is Bronny, who was selected with the 55th pick in the 2024 NBA Draft. Bronny has already dealt with his fair share of critics and pressure due to his being LeBron James’ son, but he has handled the pressure thus far and said he is not concerned with any of the outside noise.

James also had a second quarter steal that got the Lakers out on the break, ending with a Kyle Mangas layup.

The Lakers play three games in the California Classic before heading to Las Vegas for the big summer league tournament featuring every team. The Lakers have four games spread over the week before the playoffs begin on July 20th. Their next game is Sunday, July 7 against the Golden State Warriors.

Dalton Knecht also playing for Lakers in NBA Summer League

Aside from Bronny, No. 17 overall pick Dalton Knecht will also be suiting up for Los Angeles and he’ll also have a lot to prove after somehow falling out of the lottery. Knecht was considered one of the most NBA-ready prospects in his draft class and has a clear runway to get his professional career off to a strong start.

Ex-NBA player Theo Pinson thinks the Lakers got the steal of the draft with Knecht.

“The steal of the draft? Oh, Lakers’ Knecht, from Tennessee.” Pinson said on his To the Baha podcast with Raymond Felton. “He’s a bucket. I would’ve taken him first pick, but you know how everybody else is. ‘He’s too old,’ and all this s**t. He’s the best player in the draft. He’s a dog, bro. He can play and he’s got bounce. He’ll punch on you, too. They talk about, they don’t know if he can guard. I’m like, bro, who can guard?”

Knecht averaged 21.7 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 1.9 assists per game last season for the Vols while shooting 39.9% from three-point range. The Northern Colorado transfer was SEC Player of the Year and a finalist for the national Naismith College Player of the Year Award won by Purdue’s Zach Edey.

The potential downside with Knecht is that he is an older prospect, as he turned 23 this April. The new Lakers sharpshooter had a five-year college career at Northeastern Junior College, University of Northern Colorado, and Tennessee.