Some players’ influence on their peers isn’t hard to see. We’ve all heard about the stories of Kobe Bryant and his teammates waking up at 5 AM for practice after hitting the clubs the night before. But some influence their peers indirectly, through their game. This is what the case is when it comes to Bronny James and Luka Doncic.
Luka only moved to the Los Angeles Lakers this month after the Dallas Mavericks shockingly traded him and Maxi Kleber for Anthony Davis and Max Christie. But it seems even in his short time at the Lakers, there’s been two things that have caught the eye of one half of the only father-son duo in the NBA. Let’s hear what those aspects of Luka’s game are from Bronny himself.
“Just his patience and just being able to be unpredictable. I think that’s the thing I’ve watched the most about him. You never know what he’s gonna do. So I think that’s the best thing that I’ve seen so far from him,” said Bronny. And we believe he’s hit it on the head with this.
From behind-the-back passes to nutmegging defenders to no-look assists, you never know what Luka will do when he has the ball. And this unpredictability makes Luka a nightmare to defend. They don’t call him “Luka Magic” for nothing. And Luka never forces things. He’s always looking for the right opportunity to catch his opponents off-guard and make a play that no one expects, regardless of how long needs to wait. Bronny James is smart to try to pick up these aspects of Luka’s game. Even though it’s probably not something that’s taught.
We saw some Luka Magic on display tonight when the Lakers beat the Nuggets 123-100. The 25-year-old was phenomenal tonight, especially in his linkup with Bronny’s dad, LeBron James, including a pass that traveled the length of the court to find LeBron. Doncic really showed that he’s finally finding his footing in Los Angeles.
And it seems Bronny is already learning and improving his game by being in the vicinity of players like Doncic. James was instrumental in his team’s 118-98 victory over the Valley Suns, even showing off a move that was vintage Luka. And he had some thoughts about an aspect of his game that not many people talk about. Let’s find out what he had to say.
Bronny James feels he can score from “all three levels” as he reflects on his crazy performance against the Valley Suns
Having a deep bag is really important nowadays. With everyone good at multiple things on the court, being a one-trick pony is a death sentence in today’s game. But Bronny James is someone who’s ahead of the curve as he constantly trying to pick up new elements to add to his game.
Bronny picked up where he left off in the G-League with a scintillating display against the Valley Suns. And the South Bay Lakers were finally able to snap their 4-game losing streak because of Bronny and Sir’Jabari Rice’s efforts. He was responsible for 24 of the Suns’ 118 points. But it’s also how he scored those points that’s really impressive. Bronny sunk in shots from the deep, hit plenty of mid-rangers, and even drove into the paint and decelerated before shooting a jumper, mimicking his newest Lakers teammate, Luka Doncic.
It seems he’s already picking up aspects of Luka’s game. And here’s what he had to say about his performance tonight. “[I’m] mainly trynna get downhill, get in the paint. Draw some fouls so I can open up my jump shot. Get some form shots under me. But I’m just taking what the defense gives me. And I wasn’t able to get all the way to the paint sometimes. So I just settle for the middle. I feel like I can score at all three levels,” said Bronny.
Bronny now averages more than 22 points per game in the G-League this season. He’s well on his way to silencing the critics who cried nepotism when he got drafted. And if Bronny can continue evolving as a player, there may be a new James-Doncic pairing in Los Angeles.
