LeBron James leaving Los Angeles was always going to change far more than the Lakers’ championship plans. For the last two seasons, his time in purple and gold had included something the NBA had never seen before. He got to share the floor with his son. Now, after LeBron agreed to a two-year, $8 million deal with the Philadelphia 76ers, that chapter is over.

That naturally leaves one big question behind. What happens to Bronny James? Following his father to Philadelphia might sound like the obvious next chapter, especially after the two made history together in LA. But with Bronny coming off an improved second season and JJ Redick slowly finding ways to use him, one former Lakers champion believes separating the two might actually be exactly what the 21-year-old needs.

Mychal Thompson made that case on ESPN LA’s Sedano & Kap when asked how long it would take before Bronny joined his father in Philadelphia. “I really believe Bronny wants to continue to play here. JJ seems to like him,” Thompson said. The two-time Lakers champion pointed toward Bronny’s improvement before adding, “Give him a chance now to make his own path in the NBA.” And Thompson did not exactly predict superstardom either. “He’s not going to be Shai Gilgeous-Alexander or Kyrie Irving, but he’s a solid player. So let him play out of his dad’s shadow.”

There is actually some weight behind Thompson’s argument.

Bronny went from playing 27 games as a rookie to 42 this past season. More importantly, his shooting started looking like an NBA-level weapon. His field-goal percentage jumped from 31.3% to 40.9%, while he went from 28.1% from three to 38.6%. His assists and steals increased too, despite playing only 8.9 minutes per game.

There were glimpses of what that could look like with a bigger opportunity. Against San Antonio in February, Bronny played a season-high 25 minutes and finished with 12 points and six assists while hitting both of his threes. He later scored 10 points in 21 minutes against Golden State before ending the regular season with 11 points and four assists against Utah.

His G League numbers told a similar story. Bronny shot 56.4% from the field and 45.6% from three across 14 appearances for South Bay. His scoring dropped from 21.9 points per game the previous season to 15.6, but so did his turnovers, from 3.5 to 2.1 per game.

And Redick has noticed the changes.

“He’s now developed where he’s got a great point-five mentality,” the Lakers coach said during the season. “He’s catch-and-shoot ready at all times.” After another performance against Portland, Redick praised Bronny’s containment and physicality defensively and called getting meaningful fourth-quarter minutes a “really good building block.”

Bronny James no longer needs LeBron to make his Lakers case

Perhaps the biggest sign came before LeBron even made his decision.

The Lakers fully guaranteed Bronny’s $2.296 million salary for 2026-27 on June 30. His contract also carries a $2.487 million team option for 2027-28. Los Angeles had already declined Nick Smith Jr.’s team option a day earlier, removing another guard from the equation.

That doesn’t guarantee Bronny minutes. Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves sit at the top of a backcourt that also includes Collin Sexton, Quentin Grimes, Matisse Thybulle and Jaden Hardy. But Bronny doesn’t need the ball as several of them do. If his three-point shooting holds up, his defense and catch-and-shoot game could give Redick a specific role to work with alongside LA’s high-usage creators.

Philadelphia offers no obvious shortcut either. Tyrese Maxey, Jaylen Brown, Anfernee Simons and V.J. Edgecombe already headline a crowded rotation built to win now. More importantly, there has been no credible report that Philadelphia wants Bronny or that the Lakers intend to send him there. ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne reported that LeBron and Bronny are “not a package deal.”

Maybe that is the best thing for Bronny.

LeBron helped his son experience something no father and son had done in the NBA before. But Bronny’s next challenge was always going to be proving he could stay in this league without his father’s career defining his own. Two seasons in, the shooting is improving, Redick is trusting him more, and the Lakers have committed money to keeping him around.

For the first time in Bronny’s NBA career, LeBron won’t be standing beside him.

Now he gets to show whether Mychal Thompson is right about what happens outside that shadow.