LAS VEGAS — Bronny James followed a forgettable first half with his best offensive half of the summer, but it wasn’t enough for the Lakers.
James scored all of his team-high 18 points after halftime in the Lakers’ 87-78 Summer League loss to the Boston Celtics on Thursday night at UNLV’s Thomas & Mack Center. The second-year guard, who had six turnovers during his scoreless opening half, finished the night with five assists, three rebounds and one steal to go with eight turnovers. He shot 7 for 13 from the field (1 for 4 from 3-point range) in 28 minutes.
DJ Steward had 14 points and five assists, while shooting 6 for 11 from the field (2 for 5 from 3-point range). Christian Koloko contributed 12 points on 6-of-8 shooting, six rebounds and six of the Lakers’ 12 blocked shots to go with three assists and two steals in 25 minutes.
Cole Swider added 12 points on 6-of-11 shooting (2 for 5 from 3-point range) and four rebounds, but second-year wing Dalton Knecht was held to eight points and three rebounds while shooting 3 for 12 (1 for 6 from behind the arc) in 31 minutes.
The Lakers (1-3 in Vegas, 3-4 overall this summer) outshot the Celtics overall (44.3% to 38.5%), but Boston shot 12 for 38 from 3-point range (31.6%) while the Lakers were just 6 for 28 (21.4%) from the perimeter. The Lakers were also outrebounded 42-31, giving up 15 offensive rebounds.
The Lakers led 26-21 after one quarter, but the Celtics outscored them 19-9 in the second for a five-point halftime lead. The Celtics held a double-digit lead (65-55) going into the fourth and the Lakers never got closer than nine points the rest of the way.
Jordan Walsh had 17 points and six rebounds to pace the Celtics (3-1). Hugo Gonzalez added 13 points and five rebounds and Kenneth Lofton Jr. had 12 points, seven rebounds, five assists and three steals in 20 minutes.
The Lakers face the Denver Nuggets on Friday at 7 p.m.