Lebron James and Bronny James make NBA history as father-son duo at Los Angeles Lakers season opener | NBA News

LeBron James and Bronny James made history by becoming the first father-son duo to play together in the NBA in the Los Angeles Lakers’ season opener against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

With four minutes left in the second quarter, LeBron and Bronny entered the game together, eliciting a huge ovation from the home crowd, who understood the enormity of this milestone.

LeBron, 39, had already started the game and played 13 minutes before joining forces with his 20-year-old son to make history and make them the first father and son to play in the NBA at the same time.

“Are you ready? You see the intensity, right? But just play carefree,” father said to his son on the bench before they checked in, a conversation caught on cameras. “Don’t worry about mistakes. Just go out there and play hard.”

LeBron and Bronny played two and a half minutes on the court together, with LeBron missing two perimeter shots before making a dunk, while Bronny had an early rebound and missed a tip-in.

Bronny’s first NBA jump shot was a three-pointer that narrowly missed. He checked out with 1:19 left in the second quarter and received another ovation, but did not play again in the Lakers’ 110-103 victory.

“It was a pleasure,” LeBron said of playing alongside his son before the season opener. “In preseason, it’s the practices, just every day… that get him up to speed on what this professional life is about and how to prepare every day as a professional.”

LeBron scored 16 points while Anthony Davis impressed with 36 points and 16 rebounds. Rui Hachimura added 18 points for the Lakers, who cruised to a win in JJ Redick’s coaching debut.

Historic night for the James family

LeBron James is the leading scorer in NBA history, while LeBron James Jr. was selected by the Lakers in the second round last summer. The couple did a postgame interview after stopping in the tunnel to hug Savannah James, LeBron’s wife and Bronny’s mother.

Ken Griffey Sr. and Ken Griffey Jr. were courtside at the Lakers’ downtown arena to witness the same history they made in Major League Baseball. The two sluggers became the first father-son duo in baseball to play 51 games together for the Seattle Mariners in 1990 and 1991.

The James duo and the Griffeys met during pregame warmups for a few photos and a conversation between two notable family lines.

LeBron, a four-time NBA champion and 20-time All-Star, first spoke about his dream of playing alongside Bronny several years ago when his eldest son was still in high school.

The dream came true after Bronny was drafted after one college season as a teenager and the Lakers snatched him with the 55th overall pick, with the pair now joining a small club of father-son professional athletes who had played together.

LeBron spent the summer in Europe with Team USA at the Paris Olympics, while Bronny played for the Lakers in the summer league. They began practicing together with the Lakers before training camp and then played together for the first time during a preseason game earlier this month.

What’s next for Bronny?

The Lakers have declined to speculate on how long Bronny will remain on their NBA roster. Los Angeles also has point guards D’Angelo Russell, Gabe Vincent and Jalen Hood-Schifino, which likely makes minutes scarce for Bronny, who likely needs regular playing time to improve his game.

These factors suggest that Bronny will likely end up with the G League’s South Bay Lakers soon. LeBron and Redick have both spoken positively about the South Bay team and stated that player development is an important part of the Lakers organization.

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