Despite Bronny James’ best Summer League performance, the Lakers couldn’t hold on, losing to the Clippers on Monday night.
Bronny James had his best showing of the summer and Cole Swider continued his strong play, but the rest of the Lakers struggled mightily as the Clippers earned a 67-58 win.
Bronny dazzled with 17 points, five rebounds and five assists. Cole Swider ended with 16 points and four rebounds. Dalton Knecht struggled mightily, ending with eight points on 3-15 shooting.
Christian Koloko had another productive game with eight points, three rebounds, three steals and three blocks. Darius Bazley had a very quiet game, finishing with one point, four rebounds and two assists while attempting just one shot.
The game opened with a 3-pointer from Bronny. In three minutes of play, he was the leading scorer with five points. Cole also converted on a midrange shot. He and Bronny combined for seven of the first nine points for the Lakers. At the first timeout, it was a tie.
Out of the break, Zavier Simpson threw up a hook shot and gave the Lakers bench a stare down. The Clippers conjured up 10 straight points to take a commanding lead until Cole knocked down a 3-pointer to stop the bleeding.
The Clippers extended their scoring run to 13-3, leading to the Lakers being down by nine at the end of the first.
Inability to hand the ball off, poor closeouts and missed shots, the Lakers are struggling in Las Vegas right now.
— Edwin Garcia (@ECreates88) July 15, 2025
The second quarter opened with a pair of free throws from Bronny. As a team, the Lakers were struggling to generate offense, shooting just 36% from the field. Bronny was not only scoring, but he was facilitating with two assists. He was the first player for either team in double figures.
Clippers rookie Yanic Konan Niederhäuser threw down his third dunk of the half. Dalton finally saw the ball go through the hoop after missing his three shot attempts. At the 2:31 mark, the Lakers only had 24 points on the board. LA finally started making more shots, with Dalton scoring four of the eight straight points they put up.
Bronny impressed with a beautiful hook shot to make it a one-point deficit for the Lakers heading into halftime.
The Lakers trail the Clippers 32-31 at the half. Bronny James is having a great Summer League game. He has 12 points and is a perfect 4-4 from the field.
— Edwin Garcia (@ECreates88) July 15, 2025
Both teams started the second half on scoring runs. The Lakers scored five straight, and the Clippers followed with four straight. Dalton followed a missed 3-pointer with an emphatic dunk. Niederhäuser once again could not be stopped and threw down two more dunks, one of which gave the arena a jolt of life.
Much of the rest of the quarter was a struggle for both teams. The Lakers were shooting 33% from the field, while the Clippers were at 40%. At the end of the third, the purple and gold were down by five.
It was the Cole show in the final frame. He scored eight points. Bronny knocked down his third 3-pointer of the night as well. Both players continued to keep the team afloat coming down the stretch.
The Clippers then went on a 7-0 scoring run, which led to them being up by five. Two straight layups from Jordan Miller put the final nail in the coffin for the Lakers.
Key Takeaways:
Bronny will earn quality rotational minutes next season with his excellent Summer League play.
It takes him a while to find his footing in games, but once Christian starts cooking, he looks like a good backup big for any team.
Catch the Summer League game on Thursday against the Boston Celtics at 6:00 PM PT.
You can follow Karin on Twitter at @KarinAbcarians.