Lakers' JJ Redick: Bronny James Will Hit Next Level When He Overcomes Fear of Failure

Los Angeles Lakers head coach JJ Redick says Bronny James will take the next step in his NBA development when he overcomes his fear of failure.

"He's got to get to the point where it's okay to fail. I think he has a real reservation to fail," Redick told reporters on Tuesday (h/t ESPN's Dave McMenamin.) "And I think a lot of that is, he's had a camera on him since he was eight years old... He's had attention on him. I'm cognizant of that. I think, once he develops that, he's going to take off."

Redick added: "Part of player development is not just the physical skills, and the physical development, but it is the mental development as well."

James made his most recent appearance for the Lakers in a Dec. 8 win over the Portland Blazers, during which he recorded one block in three minutes on the court. He has since been playing for the G League's South Bay Lakers.

He is set to participate in the G League Winter Showcase this week in Orlando, per ESPN's Shams Charania and McMenamin.

According to Charania and McMenamin, the Lakers and James' agents "partnered on the plan" to have James participate in the tournament.

The Winter Showcase brings all G League teams together from Dec. 19-22 to play in front of "general managers and player personnel executives from all 30 NBA teams," according to the league.

More than 100 players have been called up to NBA rosters following showcases over the last 19 years, the G League reported.

James will hope to use the event to build on his success last weekend, during which he played in the first road games of his G League career.

He scored a G League career-high 30 points last Friday, then followed that up with a 16-point performance on Saturday in a pair of losses to the Valley Suns.

ESPN's Brian Windhorst reported in November that the Lakers only intended for James to play in G League home games.

But the No. 55 pick of the 2024 draft and the son of NBA all-time leading scorer LeBron James has so far received only very limited opportunities at the NBA level, recording a career-high 5:16 on the court on Oct. 30 and playing under three minutes in five of his seven appearances with the Lakers.

The Lakers seem to have decided that further development in the G League will be beneficial for James' development. According to Redick, that involves both his mentality as well as his physical abilities.

Should James stick with South Bay through the showcase, he could rejoin the Lakers at the earliest for Monday's home game against the Detroit Pistons.