The stage was perfectly set for LeBron James and his son, Bronny, to make history as the first father-son duo to play in an NBA game during the Los Angeles Lakers‘ season opener against Minnesota on Tuesday.
Ken Griffey Sr. and Jr. (the first father and son to team up in MLB more than 30 years ago) sat courtside. James’ wife, Savannah, and daughter, Zhuri, were in attendance. To make things even sweeter for the Jameses, it happened to be Zhuri’s 10th birthday.
Lakers coach JJ Redick knew he was going to sub-in Bronny late in the first half. The moment came with 4 minutes left in the second quarter and the Lakers up by 16 points. Father and son walked over to the scorer’s table and ripped off their warm-ups. The sold-out crowd at Crypto.com Arena stood and cheered. Zhuri clasped her hands together and grinned widely.
The following few minutes were less eventful.
Bronny missed both of his shot attempts, including a 3-pointer off a pass from his father. He grabbed an offensive rebound. He guarded Timberwolves superstar Anthony Edwards briefly. He exited the game with 1:19 left in the half and didn’t return.
But none of that mattered.
More importantly, it was a dream come true for James, the oldest active player in the league at 39, whose goal was to play with his son. And it was a surreal moment for Bronny, the 20-year-old 55th overall pick in the NBA Draft in June, who didn’t know if he’d ever play basketball again after suffering a cardiac arrest in August 2023 at a USC practice.
“Obviously that moment, us being at the scorer’s table together and checking in together, something I will never forget, no matter how old I get, no matter how my memory may fade as I get older or whatever, I will never forget that moment,” said James, who finished with 16 points, five rebounds and four assists in the Lakers’ 110-103 win.
When both James and Bronny weren’t playing, they sat next to each other on the bench. A few times, James covered his face with a towel as he spoke to his son, so no obtrusive cameras could expose his words.
[Related: LeBron and Bronny James make history]
After the game, James and Anthony Davis, whose lockers are next to each other, talked football as they got dressed, which often transpires after wins. Bronny got dressed silently.
Then James and Bronny walked into the interview room together and sat next to each other on the podium as they answered questions from the media.
James was asked to recall how he felt ahead of his first game as a rookie with the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2003. At the time, he was an 18-year-old who had already been dubbed “The Chosen One” and the possible successor to Michael Jordan.
“It was very stressful for me,” James said. “Didn’t get much sleep the night before. Didn’t get much sleep during my pregame nap. I was extremely nervous. I felt the world of the game of basketball on my shoulders and I felt like pretty much everyone, besides my family and friends, wanted me to fail. And I just channeled that in.”
What are the expectations for Bronny and LeBron?
Bronny, of course, has very different expectations. The question isn’t whether he’ll take over the league, it’s how long he’ll be able to remain in it.
That said, he’s still dealing with crushing pressure. He doesn’t want to be in his father’s shadow. He doesn’t want his NBA tenure dismissed as nepotism. He wants to make a name for himself.
Bronny acknowledged it was “a little nerve wracking” stepping onto the court, but added that it faded after running up and down a few times.
“I tried not to focus on everything that was going on around me and tried to focus on going in as a rookie and not trying to mess up,” Bronny said. “But yeah, I totally did feel the energy and I appreciate the Laker Nation for showing the support for me and my dad.”
Davis, who has been teammates and close friends with James since 2019 and is intimately familiar with Bronny’s journey, said watching them take the court together was “monumental” and acknowledged pulling for the rookie.
“We wanted that 3 to go in,” said Davis, who had 36 points and 16 rebounds. “Bron threw it to him and we wanted, obviously, for that to go in. But just looking at them checking in at the same time at the scorer’s table, it gave me like a little chills.”
In many ways, despite the moment undeniably being special, it was also apparent that both father and son wanted to get it out of the way, for their sake and the team’s.
James wants to focus on helping the Lakers become a championship-caliber franchise following their first-round playoff exit last season. He wants to help his son develop. And he doesn’t want his dream come true to become a distraction.
As for Bronny, Tuesday was an incredible moment.
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He watched his father have so many of those, wishing he could one day do something similar. He marveled at witnessing James help Cleveland overcome a 3-1 deficit in the 2016 NBA Finals. And seeing James lead Team USA to overcome a 17-point deficit in the semifinals of the 2024 Olympic Games en-route to winning the gold medal.
Now, he was part of one of his father’s most proud moments. And for both of them, that’s going to take some time to sink in.
“I don’t know that it’s actually going to hit the both of us for a little minute where we really get to sit back and be like, ‘Oh, sheesh, that was pretty, that’s pretty crazy,'” James said.
Melissa Rohlin is an NBA writer for FOX Sports. She previously covered the league for Sports Illustrated, the Los Angeles Times, the Bay Area News Group and the San Antonio Express-News. Follow her on Twitter @melissarohlin.
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