Bronny's First Slam! Reaves Lob Lifts Lakers

Bronny James finally scored his first points of the season in the Lakers’ 130-120 win over Miami, finishing a lob from Austin Reaves with a loud dunk. An end-of-the-bench player until Sunday, he’d appeared in just three games (28 total minutes) and was 0-for-3 before going 1-for-4 and finishing with two points in 18 minutes. With LeBron, Deandre Ayton, Gabe Vincent and Maxi Kleber out, coach JJ Redick had to dig deeper and gave Bronny the look. Merlin sees this as a small but important spark — a confidence builder and a public display of trust from Reaves. It’s a tiny sample size, however; unless more absences occur or Bronny brings consistent defense and playmaking, his role will likely remain limited. Still, moments like this can turn into more chances.