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United States Hot Takes on Lakers' Bronny James, Dalton Knecht vs. Heat with Kel'el Ware Out
Los Angeles Lakers rookies Bronny James and Dalton Knecht played another California Classic summer league game Wednesday, falling 82-78 to the Miami Heat in San Francisco's Chase Center.
James had a quiet offensive night (three points on 1-of-3 shooting) but excelled defensively (three blocks, two steals) and finished plus-eight in the Lakers' 80-76 loss. He also added five rebounds and three assists in his 29 minutes.
James' field goal came off a Knecht dish on the fast break.
NBA @NBABronny James finishes the reverse off the dish from Dalton Knecht ????Lakers '24 draft class connection ????LAL-MIA | California Classic on ESPN2 pic.twitter.com/gnAk3y1ghB
His two steals also directly led to points off turnovers, including this Maxwell Lewis bucket.
Los Angeles Lakers @LakersBronny with the stealMaxwell with the finish pic.twitter.com/pPcnOPOjeI
Knecht had a solid night with 20 points and nine rebounds.
NBA @NBADalton Knecht scores 20 and grabs 9 boards in a strong showing from the Lakers' No. 17 pick ???????? California Classic Summer League pic.twitter.com/9Yk01bkTTl
Ten of his points came in the first quarter alone. He capped the scoring with a corner three.
NBA @NBADalton Knecht (No. 17 pick) up to 10 points for the Lakers in the 1Q of the California Classic on ESPN2 ???? pic.twitter.com/kqjjDI2xaa
Keshad Johnson and Alondes Williams each scored 21 points for Miami, which finished the game on a 10-0 run. Heat rookie center Kel'el Ware, the No. 15 draft pick, had the night off.
People are obviously going to look at James' scoring totals (he scored just four points in his first summer league outing) and express concerns. James has work to do in that department, but in fairness, the 19-year-old is only two summer league games into his pro career.
However, he's certainly showing promise in other areas, particularly on the defensive end, which could be his calling card in the league. Fans expressed optimism for his work on that end alongside other contributions.
The Hood Therapist @OhhMar24People are going to look at the stat line of this Bronny James game and not realize at all the impact he had on defense. Shut everything down on the perimeter pic.twitter.com/MCpn8pYudx
Lakers Legacy @LakersLegacyPodBronny James had a really good Defensive game, but people will troll you about him only having 3pts (on 3 shots) and falling to the floor.He also had 2 stls and 3 blks if you want some sexy $tats. pic.twitter.com/BQIWXjA1YV
BronMuse @BronMuseBronny James tonight:3 PTS5 REB3 AST3 BLK2 STL+8The 55th pick doing a little bit of everything ???????? pic.twitter.com/G2iJxrFxxs
CourtSideHeat @courtsideheatBronny James had some solid defensive moments, credit to him on that, but offensively, I think they need to steer away from him (my opinion)
AD | Go Green @demontimefrvrBronny tonight: 3 points (1-3 shooting)5 rebounds 3 assists 2 steals 3 blocks +8 while he was on the court for 28 minutes Nobody ever said that Bronny James would give mfs 30 any given night, but his ability to contribute in other areas is why he got drafted
BKS @BKSecretsportsBronny James had 2 steals, 3 blocks and was a +8 which was 2nd on the team but the only thing the media will talk about is that he had 3 points. They will not add context or tell you that he only shot 3 shots in today's game. Somehow his summer league game is being talked about…
NephewOfTheKing???? @BuiltbyRoyaltyBronny James today. He shot the ball 3 times in 4 quarters. The skill is there. The mindset and how he approaches the game has to be tweaked. Shoot the ball. Simple…I'm sure you still can't comprehend that. But doesn't hurt for me to try to teach ball to people who don't know… https://t.co/ib2hHTl76b pic.twitter.com/6QB286t4jM
Knecht, meanwhile, showcased the offensive promise that led to L.A. taking the consensus first-team All-American with the No. 17 overall draft pick. Fans took note.
Lakers Legacy @LakersLegacyPodReally great "break out" game for Dalton Knecht.14 pts in the 1st Half.Did a little bit of literally everything and showed off the full offensive arsenal. pic.twitter.com/UA8LmH8kNM
LakeShowYo @LakeShowYoDalton Knecht ????????????20 Points9 Rebounds1 Assist7/18 FGM pic.twitter.com/YRISPg2vrn
JNav @jnavlaKnecht's game is extremely smooth and effortless. Sometimes you don't get that from a rookie. https://t.co/Eer9EGDfja
M&Worthy @thatsanicepickI saw what I needed to see from Knecht, just gotta keep stacking days
????NBA•Fan???? @Klutch_23Dalton Knecht's jumper is so purree ????https://t.co/O6vDrv19mA
Raj C. @RajChipaluKnecht reads those over plays so well. Fun chemistry brewing between him and Castleton.
Matthew Peralta @_MatthewPeraltaDidn't get to watch too much of the game, but from the few clips I did see I can say I think Knecht will be just fine. Bronny's defense also stands out, will be fun to watch him hound players for South Bay
Up next for the Lakers is a date with the Houston Rockets on July 12 to kick off the Las Vegas portion of the summer league schedule. Tipoff is 7:30 p.m. ET.
