LeBron and Bronny James – How accurate are their genes? -Basketball

LeBron James (left) talks to his son (right). © APA / EZRA SHAW

LeBron and Bronny James will most likely become the first father-son duo to appear on the court together in an NBA game.

20 October 2024

From: dpa

But the Los Angeles Lakers also squandered a lot of credit with the second-round draft of the 20-year-old offspring of the basketball legend. Numerous fans and critics believe that the once proud club has given itself over to the ego show of the aging “King James” and is selling its soul with such escapades.

Next Tuesday (local time) the 79th season of NBA history starts with the game between defending champions Boston Celtics and the New York Knicks. A few hours later, many more eyes will be on the LA Lakers’ first game against the Minnesota Timberwolves – in anticipation of LeBron James Jr.’s first NBA appearance. The son of four-time champion LeBron James, known as Bronny, was selected 55th in the NBA draft on June 27, 2024. Now the two James men are about to make sports history. “It means everything to a father,” said soon-to-be 40-year-old LeBron James.

For a 20-year-old who can’t take a single step without being watched, this is certainly an extraordinary situation and involves a lot of pressure. “I’ve been dealing with things like this my whole life. It’s definitely gotten worse now, but I can handle it,” assured Bronny James at a media event. “I never thought I would play with my father either.”

LeBron James and Bronny James enter the court together. © APA / EZRA SHAW

After suffering cardiac arrest in the summer of 2023, Bronny played just one season at the University of Southern California before declaring for the draft. His achievements were anything but brilliant. Nevertheless, crowds of media people gathered at the official presentation of the 1.88 meter tall guard in July.
The father-son constellation is not a precedent in top-class sport, but it only occurs in exceptional cases.

When he was in his mid-forties, ice hockey icon Gordie Howe was a teammate of his two sons Marty and Mark with the Houston Aeros. In Major League Baseball, Ken Griffey senior and Ken Griffey junior played together for the Seattle Mariners at times in the early 1990s. The Icelandic footballer Eidur Gudjohnsen came on as a substitute for his father Arnor Gudjohnsen in an international match against Estonia in 1996. In Austria, Mykola Bilyk even won the handball championship title with his dad Serhij in goal for Fivers Margareten in 2016 before he joined THW Kiel.

LeBron warming up. © APA / EZRA SHAW

LeBron James made it clear to the Lakers early enough that his last big dream in the NBA would be to play with his son. The fact that Bronny’s heart stopped beating a year ago may have changed the dynamic within the family and strengthened this desire. But whether it was a smart and understandable decision from the club’s perspective to draft James Junior has been hotly debated for weeks. There is talk of nepotism and extortionate actions by LeBron James and agent Rich Paul, especially on social media.

What’s wrong with a draft experiment, one could say from the Lakers management’s perspective. But since the NBA draft only lasts two rounds, every pick needs to be carefully considered. And Bronny James has not yet revealed the talent that would predestine him for a long and successful NBA career. In the preseason games he showed good signs of defensive work, but revealed efficiency problems with his throws. Almost all experts agree that someone else with the same measurements and skills but a different last name would probably not have been drafted.

A difficult situation

“There will be a lot of noise from outside about Bronny,” said long-time NBA coach Stan Van Gundy, predicting a difficult season for the Lakers. “If he doesn’t play, people will demand that he play with LeBron. If he plays, people will say he doesn’t deserve to play.” Another facet: The new Lakers coach JJ Reddick, installed in the summer, is a friend of James. The two started the podcast “Mind The Game” together in March 2024. There are already many doubts that Reddick can make important decisions objectively given this close relationship.