The sixth game in eight nights for the Lakers meant they were going to have to pay for all the energy they used fighting short handed over the last week.
It meant Austin Reaves and Luka Doncic needed to sit out because of sore ankles, Jarred Vanderbilt had to rest an injured groin and Dorian Finney-Smith was out because of nagging ankle issues. LeBron James also missed his seventh consecutive game because of a groin strain.
So who was in?
“The healthy players are gonna play tonight,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said.
That Bronny James is one of the healthy ones, again, is a reminder of how much of his journey is already house money, the Lakers rookie surviving a cardiac arrest less than two years ago.
With the Lakers down to 10 available players against Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks in a 118-89 lopsided loss, Bronny James got his longest runway yet to show the steps he’s taken largely in the shadows of the G League.
James scored a career-high 17 points, sparking the Lakers’ only positive quarter, the second, when the team outscored the Bucks 27-23.
James made seven of 10 from the field along with three rebounds, five assists and three turnovers. He played a season-high 30 minutes for the Lakers (43-26).
The performance caps a stretch where he has been much more comfortable on NBA courts. He has made 15 of his last 26 shots over an eight-game stretch that’s included real rotation minutes twice, including Thursday. Dalton Knecht also scored 17 points.
Antetokounmpo led the Bucks (39-30) with 28 points, seven rebounds and four assists.
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