CNN
—

Bronny James, son of the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, LeBron James, had the best performance of his young professional career on Friday, scoring 17 points in the Los Angeles Lakers’ final preseason game.

In his first preseason start, James was 7 of 17 from the field and also recorded four rebounds, one assist, three steals and one block. However, the undermanned Lakers – who opted to rest several key players, including James Sr. – suffered a tough 132-74 road loss to the Golden State Warriors.

Multiple All-Star Anthony Davis, D’Angelo Russell, Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura were among the players who didn’t play as first-time head coach JJ Redick handed the keys to reserves and rookies. The Warriors, meanwhile, were without star point guard Steph Curry, but coach Steve Kerr gave all other rotation players playing time.

Experience proved the difference as Golden State built an 18-point lead at the end of the first quarter and never looked back, outscoring its Western Conference rival by nearly 60 points.

Although James impressed on the defensive side of the ball, he struggled offensively before Friday’s game, averaging just 1.6 points per game on 20% shooting in his first five preseason games. According to StatMuse, he made more turnovers than field goals in those games.

However, the 20-year-old showed signs of promise with his most confident performance to date. He made his first three-pointer of the preseason and threw a highlight alley-oop dunk after a lob from fellow rookie Quincy Olivari.

James – who was drafted 55th overall earlier this year after one season at the University of Southern California – said he was focused on finding and understanding his role on the team, although he took advantage of the opportunity to take on more responsibility to take over the setup.

“If I get the opportunity to go out and play 35 minutes, I will go out and play,” he told reporters after the game. “So I feel like I’ve been given a great opportunity to show what I can do in the future… it’s just a great moment for me.”

Redick made sure the attention remained focused on the bigger picture after the game.

“For (James) and all of our younger players, all moments are building blocks,” he said. “Not only the good moments, but also the bad moments are learning opportunities. I think you have to have a certain amount of patience and optimism. I am very confident about the level of work of our young people.

“I’m sure it was a good feeling for him to have 17 points – I’m not worried about that at all. It’s not even on my radar. We’re trying to help him develop into a great basketball player.”

Olivari scored a game-high 22 points for LA, while Jonathan Kuminga led Golden State with 17 points. Brandin Podziemski added 16 and was one of five other players to reach double-digit point totals on an even-scoring night for the Warriors.

The 2024-25 NBA regular season begins on Tuesday, October 22nd when the reigning champion Boston Celtics host the new-look New York Knicks in the first game of the season. The Lakers are also in action on opening night and will be visited by the Minnesota Timberwolves. Golden State begins its season on Thursday against the Portland Trail Blazers.

The first meeting of the Lakers and Warriors of the regular season will be a massive matchup – the West Coast rivals will face off in a primetime matchup on Christmas Day.