LeBron James and his eldest son Bronny James claimed a piece of NBA history on Sunday after making their long-awaited first appearance alongside each other for the Los Angeles Lakers.
The duo appeared together at the start of the second quarter in the Lakers’ 118-114 preseason defeat to the Phoenix Suns in Palm Desert, east of Los Angeles.
While LeBron James impressed with 19 points in just 16min 20sec on court before sitting out the second half, Bronny found the going harder with zero points in just over 13 minutes on court. The younger James attempted just one shot.
“It was cool for both of us, especially our family,” LeBron James, 39, said afterwards of playing alongside Bronny, who celebrated his 20th birthday on Sunday. “It’s definitely a moment I’ll never forget.
“As a father it means everything. For someone who didn’t have a dad growing up, to be able to have that influence on your son, to be able to have moments with your son, to work with your son — that’s one of the greatest things a father could ever hope for.”
James Sr. admitted though that there were moments on court that felt surreal. “We came out of a timeout and we kind of stood next to each other. I kind of looked at him. It was like being in ‘The Matrix’ or something. It just didn’t feel real. But it was great to have those moments.”
Anticipation about when the James duo would become the first father-son duo to appear in the same NBA lineup together has built since the Lakers picked Bronny with the 55th pick in the NBA Draft in June.
AFP