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LeBron and Bronny James are the first father-son duo to play in an NBA game together

“The first game on the field is a little nerve-wracking,” he said. “But when I entered the court and walked up and down a few times, everything disappeared. I felt pretty good.”

Lakers coach JJ Redick said the team planned to play LeBron and Bronny together toward the end of the first half. With the Lakers' lead growing to 16, it was time to put both in the game.

“I was wondering why everyone was cheering so loudly during a dead ball,” Redick said. “And then I thought, 'Oh, that's cool.'”

Redick added that Bronny “played well, he competed throughout preseason…he had a mismatch and…” [Minnesota’s Julius] Randle gave him two hard hits, but other than that he played well.”

In the preseason, LeBron and Bronny discussed finding the right balance between treating each other as teammates and relatives, and for much of Tuesday night, their interactions looked no different than those of the other teammate duos. After singing the national anthem before kickoff, they gave a high five, and after playing the first five minutes of the game, LeBron took a seat at the other end of the Lakers' bench, four seats away from his son.

Although the two had already played together in the preseason, the exhibition statistics are not included in the NBA balance sheet, so the official “first” lineup of father and son took place on Tuesday. The NBA's all-time leading scorer and also expected to become its all-time leading scorer in minutes played this season, the elder James was already one of the most prolific and prolific athletes in league history. But what happened on Tuesday, when he had a falling out with his son, was more personal.

Bronny was born just weeks before his father's second NBA season began in 2004.

“He's his own man, and to see him continue to grow, it's been a pleasure to be able to see that,” LeBron said at the team's shootaround just hours before Tuesday's announcement, according to the Los Angeles Times. “I missed so many days while I was playing and they were in elementary school, middle school and high school. I missed many days. So it’s pretty cool that we’re now able to make up for some of those days of being together and working together.”

He reminded reporters of the uncertainty over whether Bronny would have a chance to play in the NBA after he suffered cardiac arrest during a practice at the University of Southern California in the summer of 2023. Bronny recovered in time and was able to return to play in December, averaging 4.8 points in his only season of college ball.

Watching his father win an NBA championship in Cleveland in 2016 and lead in a historic comeback against Golden State fueled Bronny's drive to conquer the league himself, he said. This was cemented in August when he watched his father play for Team USA and defeat Serbia in a chaotic game at the Paris Olympics.

“They both said, ‘Damn, this is a crazy sport. “I really want to be a part of it,” Bronny said.

On Tuesday he was there for the first time as a professional – and at his father's side.

“Everything,” LeBron said, “was just great today.”

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