Perhaps the biggest achievement in Bronny James’ rookie year happened when he tied Michael Jordan’s regular-season three-point count as a first-year player.
On Saturday, the Lakers took on the second-seeded Houston Rockets in their penultimate game.
Houston, who have stamped their playoff spot, sat their stars and dropped to a 52-29 record. In the 140-109 blowout, the Lakers gave their deep bench some minutes in garbage time.
In four minutes on the hardwood, LeBron James’ junior sunk his ninth three-pointer this season, tying Hall of Famer in his first NBA campaign in 1984-85.
Bronny had the chance to outshoot Jordan in the season finale against Portland. Unfortunately, he went 0-2 from three in 38 minutes as the Lakers ended the regular season in a 109-81 loss.
The 55th pick finished his season with 62 points, 18 rebounds and 22 assists in 27 games and one start for Los Angeles.
Bronny James tied Michael Jordan’s rookie year three-point count with his ninth three-pointer
While Bronny tied his three-point count, his season is a far cry from Jordan’s rookie campaign. The Chicago Bulls star averaged 28.2 points, 6.5 rebounds and 5.9 assists to finish with 2,313 points.
Jordan also won the Rookie of the Year award and was part of the All-NBA second team.
He went on to win six titles with a perfect NBA Finals record to become the consensus GOAT in basketball.
Despite the loss to Portland, the purple and gold finished with a 50-32 record and locked the third-seed in the Western Conference. They will face Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves in the opening round of the postseason.
After winning the title behind James and Anthony Davis in 2020, the Lakers fell in the first round in 2021 and 2024. They were swept by the Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference final in 2023.
