LeBron, Bronny James make NBA history with father-son appearance

LOS ANGELES: LeBron and Bronny James made NBA history on Tuesday (Oct 22), becoming the first father-and-son duo to play alongside each other in a regular season fixture as the Los Angeles Lakers opened their campaign against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The duo, who played together briefly in a pre-season game earlier this month, took to the court together late in the second quarter at the Crypto.com Arena with the Lakers leading 51-35.
An enormous roar went up from the home crowd as the James duo were brought onto the court by coach JJ Redick after the Lakers had surged into a double-digit lead.
In a perfectly scripted moment that was pure Hollywood, the James’ double-act was watched at courtside by Ken Griffey Sr and Ken Griffey Jr, who made baseball history playing for the Seattle Mariners as father and son in 1990 and 1991.
“We made history; now we get to watch history,” said Griffey Jr, who joined his father to pose for photos with LeBron and Bronny James shortly before Tuesday’s tip-off.
Bronny James, who like many first-year players is not expected to see significant floor time this season, grabbed a rebound in his three minutes of action while LeBron contributed 16 points in the Lakers’ 110-103 win.
Lakers officials had been coy before Tuesday’s season-opener about where and when LeBron James and Bronny would play their first regular season fixture together.
However, NBA superstar LeBron James, who turns 40 in December, admitted in pre-game remarks that he could scarcely contain his excitement at the prospect of realising his long-cherished dream of sharing a court with his son.
“Just to run out the tunnel knowing that he’ll be in uniform, run out the tunnel with him, see him warm up, and be out there with the rest of my teammates,” James told reporters during a morning shoot-around on Tuesday.
“This is my 22nd time running out on opening night so I don’t know how many times I’ll have an opportunity, how many times I’ve got left to run out. I won’t take it for granted.”
Anticipation about the James double-act has dominated the Lakers’ preparations for the new season since Bronny James was selected by the franchise with the 55th pick in the draft in June.
Bronny James, 20, will likely spend most of his rookie season in the developmental G League rather than the Lakers’ senior squad.