Dave McMenamin, ESPN Workers Author
LOS ANGELES — When LeBron James made historical past two seasons in the past, passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar because the NBA’s all-time main scorer, his eldest son, Bronny James, was sitting on a courtside seat alongside the baseline.
On Tuesday night time, within the Los Angeles Lakers’ season opener towards the Minnesota Timberwolves, LeBron and Bronny made historical past by being on the court docket collectively.
They turned the primary father-son duo in NBA historical past to look in a recreation collectively after they checked within the recreation on the similar time with 4:00 left within the second quarter.
Because the pair obtained up from the top of the bench and walked towards the scorer’s desk, the Crypto.com Enviornment crowd started to buzz, erupting in a cheer when LeBron and Bronny tore off their warmups to formally step onto the court docket.
LeBron James.
Bronny James.The primary father-son duo to play collectively within the NBA! pic.twitter.com/naadFLoPmh
— NBA (@NBA) October 23, 2024
Bronny, chosen by L.A. within the second spherical with the No. 55 decide in June, struggled within the preseason, averaging 4.2 factors on 29.7% from the sector. However he completed on a excessive word, scoring 17 factors on 7-for-17 taking pictures with 4 rebounds and three steals.
First-year Lakers coach JJ Redick championed the rookie guard, nevertheless, enjoying him in all six of L.A.’s exhibition video games, together with making an attempt out a lineup with Bronny and LeBron collectively briefly within the second quarter towards the Phoenix Suns on Oct. 6.
Earlier than the Wolves recreation, Redick mentioned he was “thrilled to be a- half” of the “historic” event of LeBron and Bronny getting into the season on the identical group.
Redick mentioned that he consulted with the daddy and son to get their enter on how they would favor their first recreation motion collectively to play out.
“We had a pair conversations round it,” Redick mentioned. “I feel everyone is on the identical web page. We would like it to type of make sense and we wish it to occur naturally and within the move of a recreation.”
Sitting alongside the identical baseline the place Bronny watched his dad break Abdul-Jabbar’s document was one other father-son duo that made historical past collectively.
Ken Griffey Jr. and Ken Griffey Sr., the primary father-son duo to play collectively within the MLB, made an event out of it.
“To know that these guys shall be in attendance tonight whereas me and Bronny are on the identical group is a reasonably cool second in historical past of sports activities,” LeBron mentioned after L.A.’s morning shootaround.
LeBron and Bronny took a fast break from their pregame warmups to greet the Griffeys and pose for a photograph on the court docket.
Tuesday was the fourth time in skilled sports activities when the father-son occasion occurred.
Moreover the Griffeys, the Jameses are joined by hockey nice Gordie Howe, who performed with two of his sons, Mark and Marty, for the Hartford Whalers in 1980, the primary time the household feat occurred within the NHL. Tim Raines and Tim Raines Jr. additionally took the sector collectively for the Baltimore Orioles on Oct. 4, 2001.
The Griffeys performed collectively for the Seattle Mariners for 2 seasons in 1990 and 1991, memorably hitting back-to-back homeruns on Sept. 14, 1990.
