Bronny James Had Powerful Message After Big Performance for South Bay Lakers

What a great perspective.
James all smiles before a Lakers game against the Golden State Warriors at Chase Center.
James all smiles before a Lakers game against the Golden State Warriors at Chase Center. / Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images
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Bronny James turned in a standout performance for the G League’s South Bay Lakers on Friday night, putting up a team-high 31 points with five three-pointers made, adding three assists, two rebounds and a pair of steals. James also wowed the crowd and his teammates at the UCLA Health Training Center with an impressive poster dunk in the third quarter.

But something James said after the game was more impressive than anything he did on the court Friday night. Speaking in a postgame interview with Spectrum Sportsnet, James had a powerful response when he was asked if he's having fun.

"I am having fun," James said. "Any time I'm playing basketball, any time I'm out here breathing, any time I'm out here walking ... I'm having fun and I'm grateful. I'm just down-to-Earth and I'm grateful for everything that's been given to me."

During a workout with the USC Trojans back in July of 2023, James went into cardiac arrest as a result of what was later determined to be a congenital heart defect. In addition to being a life-threatening heart emergency, the situation, for a moment in time, put James's basketball career in serious jeopardy.

But James, after a long road to recovery, has since been drafted into the NBA, made league history appearing in a Los Angeles Lakers game alongside his father LeBron James, and has posted averages of 16.3 points, 4.2 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game in the G League.

And the experience, while a trying one, has instilled in him a wise-beyond-his-years perspective on life.


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Tim Capurso
TIM CAPURSO

Tim Capurso is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Prior to joining SI in November 2023, he wrote for RotoBaller and ClutchPoints, where he was the lead editor for MLB, college football and NFL coverage. A lifelong Yankees and Giants fan, Capurso grew up just outside New York City and now lives near Philadelphia. When he's not writing, he enjoys reading, exercising and spending time with his family, including his three-legged cat Willow, who, unfortunately, is an Eagles fan.