On Tuesday night during the Los Angeles Lakers season opener, LeBron James and his son Bronny made history by becoming the first father and son to share the court in the NBA. They entered the game together with four minutes remaining in the second quarter to a warm welcome from the home crowd who understood the importance of the moment. LeBron, 39, had already played 13 minutes before joining his 20-year-old son on the floor.
LeBron is the leading scorer in NBA history, while Bronny was selected by the Lakers in the second round of the draft last summer. They are the first father and son to compete simultaneously in major league basketball and, more importantly, on the same team.
“Are you ready?” You can feel the intensity, right? Just play without pressure,” LeBron advised Bronny from the bench before entering the game, a moment captured by TNT cameras and microphones. “Don’t stress over mistakes. “Go out there and give it everything you’ve got.”
The two played together for 2.5 minutes, during which LeBron missed two outside shots before hitting a dunk. Bronny came back early in the game but missed a layup attempt.
Bronny’s first shot in the NBA was a missed three-pointer. He left the game with 1:19 left in the second quarter, receiving another round of applause from the crowd.
Bronny did not play in the Lakers’ 110-103 win over Minnesota. LeBron, who scored 16 points, interviewed Bronny on the court before heading to the Lakers locker room together, first stopping in the tunnel to hug Savannah James, LeBron’s wife and Bronny’s mother.
Ken Griffey Sr. and Ken Griffey Jr. they were present in the center arena of the Lakers to witness a stage similar to what they achieved in Major League Baseball. The two played 51 games together for the Seattle Mariners in 1990 and 1991, becoming baseball’s first father-son duo.
The James and Griffey families met during pre-game warmups for photos and a friendly chat between two prominent family legacies.
LeBron, a four-time NBA champion and 20-time All-Star, first expressed his desire to play alongside Bronny several years ago, when his oldest son was still in high school. That dream came true when Bronny entered the draft as a teenager after one year of college, and the Lakers selected him with the 55th overall pick.
“It was fun,” LeBron said during Tuesday morning’s shootaround. “In the pre-season, practices, just every day … that allow them to know what this professional life is and how they prepare every day as a professional.”
LeBron and Bronny join a select group of father and son professional athletes who play together. The Griffeys made history 34 years ago, also hitting a home run in the same game on September 14, 1990.