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Los Angeles Lakers head coach JJ Redick hopes to mold Bronny James into a defensive specialist. The first-year coach is making it a priority for the organization to be better on defense, per Lakers Nation's Corey Hansford.
“He’s really encouraging, especially for the younger guys like myself,” James said. “He’s just trying to push us into something that down the road can contribute to a winning team. JJ has really emphasized the defensive end and being a pest on defense,” Bronny added. “So that’s what I’ve just been trying to focus on when I step on the floor.”
Even with a relatively thin bench, it remains to be seen where James could fit into the rotation during the regular season.
Lakers looking for frontcourt help before regular season
Bronny James has not found his role for the Lakers in the preseason. In the Lakers' most recent preseason game against the Milwaukee Bucks, a 107-102 win, James played six minutes, missed all four of his shots and finished -12 in plus/minus. As of October 11, James ‘ -40 plus/minus ranked last among all 494 NBA players during the preseason.
Beyond the Lakers' starting lineup, the team's depth is lacking. Los Angeles continues to wait for the potential return of Christian Koloko although he's still waiting to be cleared by the NBA's Fitness-to-Play Panel.
The Lakers are also hoping to have Jarred Vanderbilt back healthy. He's been out since February with a foot injury and the team hopes to have him back by the regular season opener.
“He’s following our ramp-up protocol. He has not done any contact work, he’s not participated in any non-contact in practice, but we’re still trying to target the beginning of the season,” Redick said. “If he doesn’t have any setbacks, we’ll continue to ramp up. Our ram-up process, we’re on sort of target. It remains to be seen if he’ll be available. But no setbacks, and he just continues to work his way back.”
Without Christian Wood Koloko or Vanderbilt back on the floor, the Lakers have given many preseason minutes to Jaxson Hayes and Colin Castleton.
NBA insider Shams Charania noted last week the Lakers are looking for another big man via trade.
“Sources tell me the Lakers have been exploring potentially adding a big man, a center, to their roster,” he said. “Not sure exactly when that will take place, but they have started looking into the marketplace.”
The Lakers regular season begins against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday, October 22 at 10:00 p.m. EST.
