Lakers Summer League prospect reflects on dark side of Bronny James' buzzing offseason 

Entering his rookie season, LA Lakers guard Bronny James continues to garner unprecedented media coverage for a late second-round draft pick. According to James' NBA Summer League teammate Kyle Mangas, the 19-year-old has done an admirable job navigating the intense spotlight.

Despite being the No. 55 pick in this year's NBA draft, James was one of the most hyped-up prospects this summer. Being Lakers superstar forward LeBron James' son, many had high expectations for the rookie guard.

Thus, fans and media members scrutinized Bronny James' every move across six California Classic and Las Vegas Summer League outings. James' early offensive struggles were put on full display, with pressure mounting for him to break out of his slump.

On Wednesday's edition of the "Locked On Pacers" podcast, Mangas touched on his experience being James' teammate. The undrafted guard, who has since landed an Exhibit 10 deal with the Indiana Pacers, expressed sympathy for James dealing with constant pressure, commending his professionalism.

"There's so much media surrounding him. We would get off the bus at our hotel, and there'd be 250 people waiting for him to get off just to film and walk into the hotel," Mangas said. "You've got to feel for a kid like that, there's just a lot of pressure and publicity, and that's hard to get away from sometimes. [I] think he handled it pretty well from what I saw."

Mangas sustained an ankle injury midway through his first Summer League contest. Thus, he and James only played part of one game together. Nevertheless, Mangas got to experience firsthand the media frenzy associated with a player being the son of an NBA great.

Over six Summer League appearances, James averaged 7.0 points, 3.5 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 1.0 steals and 0.8 blocks per game, shooting 32.7% and 13.0% from 3.

However, James' offense slowly progressed, as he averaged 12.5 ppg on 47.6% shooting over his final two Las Vegas outings.

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Kyle Mangas on meeting high-profile members of Lakers as Bronny James' teammate

In addition to experiencing the magnitude of Bronny James' fame this summer, Kyle Mangas received the opportunity to meet several high-profile members of the Lakers. That includes their coach, JJ Redick, and general manager, Rob Pelinka. Mangas also practiced in front of LeBron James.

During his "Locked On Pacers" podcast interview, Mangas raved about the opportunity.

"[It] was still a super neat experience, you know. Practicing in front of LeBron [James] and just things like that," Mangas said. "Meeting JJ Redick, Rob Pelinka, all those guys. [It was] super cool."

So, despite his Summer League run being cut short by injury, it appears Mangas had a memorable summer.

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