NBA fans were largely divided after seeing LeBron James make history by playing alongside his eldest, Bronny, thereby becoming the first father-son teammates in NBA history.
Unlike the elder James was back in 2003, Bronny is not considered a once-in-a-lifetime talent, and many have accused the second-round pick of benefitting from nepotism.
‘Bronny may be the biggest nepo baby in the history of Los Angeles, which is saying a lot,’ wrote one critic on X as the Lakers beat the visiting Minnesota Timberwolve, 110-103, in the season opener at LA’s Crypto.com Arena.
However, many other fans appreciated the historic moment as Bronny logged three minutes without scoring a point.
‘If you didn’t get emotional watching Bronny check into the Lakers game with his dad, Lebron, you gotta check your pulse man,’ former NFL player Emmanuel Acho wrote on X.
NBA fans were largely divided after seeing LeBron James make history by playing alongside his eldest, Bronny, thereby becoming the first father-son duo in NBA history
LeBron James stares into the crowd alongside his son Bronny during Tuesday’s opener
‘Legitimately don’t care what your thoughts are here, seeing LeBron & Bronny check into the game together is one of the coolest things ever,’ added podcaster Josh Reynolds. ‘History.’
History was made with four minutes left in the first half, as both players checked into the game with Los Angeles holding a commanding 51-35 advantage.
Just seconds after taking the floor, LeBron missed a 3-point attempt. On the other end, Minnesota forward Julius Randle scored over Bronny on the ensuing possession.
Bronny ended up playing three minutes in the first half, missing both of his field-goal attempts and hauling in an offensive rebound. Most memorably, he was blocked by former Defensive Player of the Year, Rudy Gobert.
Many fans were quick to point out his struggles.
‘Bronny checks in,’ wrote one on X. ‘Gets babied by Randle, stuffed by Gobert… timeout LA
‘This ain’t a movie dawg,’ the critic added. ‘This is the Timberwolves.’
Many fans were supportive of Bronny James getting the chance to play with his father
Afterwards, TNT Sports interviewed both Bronny and LeBron.
‘I’m just extremely grateful for everything,’ Bronny said of his debut. ‘I was given an amazing opportunity to come into this league and get better every day and learn every day.’
But nobody was happier than LeBron, who finally got to work with his son after spending so many years away from him on the road.
‘It’s family,’ LeBron told TNT. ‘It’s always been family over everything. For me, I lost a lot of time because of this league, committing to this league, being on the road at times, missing a lot of his things, Bryce’s things, Zhuri’s things.
‘So to be able to have this moment, where I’m working still, and I can work alongside my son, it’s one of the greatest gifts I’ve ever gotten from the man above and I’m gonna take full advantage of it.’
Asked what he wants Bronny to remember, LeBron stressed the privilege of playing in the NBA.
‘This is not promised every day that you get an opportunity to play in this beautiful league,’ he said alongside his son. ‘There’s only 450 of us. Understand it’s not given to you. You got to earn every moment. He knows that and he’s looking forward to the process of getting better and better every single day to be the player he ultimately wants to be.
‘I’m super proud of him. He’s my lifeline, that’s for sure.’
Bronny James does face some critics, who think he made it to the NBA at LeBron’s urging
Bronny’s first three minutes of his pro career were forgettable to say the least
Among those who got to witness history were Ken Griffey Sr. and Ken Griffey Jr., the first father and son to play alongside each other on the same team in Major League Baseball.
Earlier Tuesday, LeBron insisted that he wasn’t focused on history potentially being made during the Lakers’ season opener.
‘Whenever it happens, it will happen,’ LeBron said following a morning shootaround. ‘If it’s tonight or if it’s down the line, whenever it happens, it will happen. But it’s been a treat, and just in preseason, the practices, just every day … just bringing him up to speed of what this professional life is all about and how to prepare every day as a professional.’
LeBron was simply looking forward to his son getting out on an NBA floor, as it has been just over a year since Bronny suffered a cardiac arrest during a preseason workout ahead of his freshman year at Southern California.
‘[It was] not too long ago that the scare happened,’ LeBron said. ‘And when he’s able to grace an NBA floor, if that’s tonight or whenever the case may be, it’ll be another one of those moments just to know the adversity that he went through.
‘I’ve had a couple of family members that have had heart surgeries. Some of them older, some of them younger. And to know how long it kind of takes to get back to yourself, to see him be able to play in a college Division I game the same year that he had heart surgery was, like, a ‘wow’ moment.’
