Bronny James silences haters with breakout scoring performance versus Warriors

Bronny James turned in by far the best performance of his young career on Friday night's preseason finale versus the Golden State Warriors.

It wasn't much of a night for the Los Angeles Lakers as a whole, who sat their rotational players and got steamrolled by no less than 58 points by a Stephen Curry-less Warriors.

But for L.A., the night belonged to Bronny.

The younger James looked like a different player than what we've seen all preseason long. He was confident, free, and aggressive, using his athleticism to disrupt passing lanes and get out on the break for impressive finishes, even catching a lob at one point.

All in all, Bronny finished with 17 points on 7-for-17 from the field (1-for-5 from three) to go along with four assists, three steals, and one block.

The highlight of the night for James came on a transition fast break. Bronny came up with a loose ball and zipped past a Warriors defender around half court with a nifty behind-the-back dribble going full speed. Undaunted by two more defenders hovering around the rim, he then attacked the basket with force and finished with an artful right-to-left hand finish reminiscent of his father.

It was a patented James family moment.

Bronny's buckets in the half court offense also previewed the different ways he can score in the NBA moving forward. A corner three off the catch. A mid-range jumper off a crisp rip-through from the corner. A feathery mid-range floater off the dribble, once again after catching the ball in the corner.

Bronny is years away from being able to maneuver an NBA half court offense from the point guard position, which means that his early career in the half court will look a lot like the above if he's successful -- catching the ball on the wing or corner and either knocking down open threes or creating a shot for himself after ripping through with his more than competent first step.

Bronny is more comfortable right now in an up-and-down game, since he can use his quick burst in transition. He's also shown a knack for starting those fast break opportunities with steals or by coming up with loose balls.

The whole league knows that Bronny has a long way to go in his development, and shooting 7-for-17 in a 58-point blowout loss isn't exactly a certified masterclass.

Still, Friday night was an enormous moment for Bronny's confidence moving forward, not to mention a reminder to doubters that he has real potential as an NBA contributor down the line.

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