Earning his second career start, Bronny James and the Los Angeles Lakers defeated Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks 119-95 on the road on Saturday.
Bronny logged just four minutes in the first half with zeros across the stat sheet. The second half offered little more for the 21-year-old, who played six additional minutes for a total of 10 and finished 0-of-2, missing both of his shots from beyond the arc.
The second-year player did not see any playing time in the second half after the 8:59 mark until just under three minutes left in “garbage time” as the Lakers pulled the rest of their starters, where he recorded one assist, one rebound and one steal.
Bronny appeared hesitant to shoot throughout his time on the floor, making him an easy assignment for the Bucks defense and limiting his impact as an offensive threat.
His first start came in the Lakers’ regular-season finale last year, when he made a historic appearance alongside his father LeBron James against Portland, logging four points, six assists and four steals.
After his second appearance in the starting lineup, fans reacted to Bronny’s performance.
Rui Hachimura and Marcus Smart were ruled out ahead of Saturday’s road game, while LeBron James remained sidelined with sciatica and has yet to make his season debut. He has been practicing with the South Bay Lakers this past week, ramping up his recovery with full-contact five-on-five work.
Stepping up, Luka Doncic led the way with 41 points, nine rebounds, six assists and two blocks to help the Lakers improve to 10-4 on the season. Austin Reaves added 25 points and Deandre Ayton finished with 20 points and 10 rebounds.
The Lakers held a dominant 31-point lead over the Bucks at halftime as Milwaukee’s starters struggled to generate any offense. Giannis Antetokounmpo led the way with 14 points, while the rest of the starting unit combined for just nine.
Despite earning the start Saturday, Bronny played only four minutes in the first half, going 0-of-1 from the field on a lone three-point attempt. Doncic paced the Lakers with 21 points on 50 percent shooting from beyond the arc and Ayton added 16.
Los Angeles maintained control throughout the second half to secure the win by 24 points.
The Lakers will face back-to-back games against the Utah Jazz on Tuesday and Sunday, first hosting them before traveling to Salt Lake City.
