LeBron and Bronny make history and perform together for the Lakers

LOS ANGELES — When LeBron James made history two seasons ago, passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the NBA's all-time leading scorer, his eldest son Bronny was sitting courtside on the baseline.

On Tuesday night, during the Los Angeles Lakers' season opener against the Minnesota Timberwolves, LeBron and Bronny made history by being on the court together.

They became the first father-son duo in NBA history to appear in a game together when they checked in with 4:00 minutes left in the second quarter. LeBron started and had already played 13 minutes before he rejoined the game with Bronny for the historic moment.

As the pair stood up from the end of the bench and walked to the scorer's table, the crowd at Crypto.com Arena began to buzz and erupted in cheers as LeBron and Bronny broke off their warm-ups to officially step onto the court.

“That moment when we sat together at the scorer’s table and checked in together, I’ll never forget that,” said LeBron in a joint postgame press conference with Bronny. “No matter how old I get, no matter how much my memory fades as I get older or whatever, I will never forget this moment.”

For Bronny, this occasion had the special significance that it was the first game of his career in the regular season.

“I tried not to focus on everything that was going on around me and just focus on coming in as a freshman and not trying to screw everything up,” Bronny said. “But yeah, I really felt the energy and I appreciate Laker Nation for supporting me and my dad.”

The Lakers lost 7-2 in their first shift together, with Bronny missing an open three-pointer on the wing and being blocked by Rudy Gobert on a tip-in attempt after fending off an offensive rebound.

There was a cheer of anticipation as Bronny attempted the three-pointer and launched it after receiving the pass from his father.

“We wanted the 3 to go in,” said Anthony Davis, who led Los Angeles with 36 points, 16 rebounds and 3 blocks. “Bron threw it to him and of course we wanted it to go in. But when I saw them checking in at the scorer’s table at the same time, I got a little goosebumps.”

Bronny checked out with 1:19 left in the half and did not return in the Lakers' 110-103 win. He had one rebound and was 0-2 from the field.

LeBron finished the game with 16 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists.

Bronny, who was selected by the Lakers in the second round of the NBA draft with the No. 55 pick, struggled in the preseason, averaging 4.2 points on 29.7% shooting from the field. But he finished the game on a high note, scoring 17 points on 7-for-17 shooting along with 4 rebounds and 3 steals in a loss to the Golden State Warriors on Friday.

However, first-year Lakers coach JJ Redick championed the rookie guard and used him in all six of Los Angeles' exhibition games, including briefly trying out a lineup with Bronny and LeBron together in the second quarter on October 6th against the Phoenix Suns.

Before the Timberwolves game, Redick said he was “thrilled to be part of” the “historic” event that will see LeBron and Bronny start the season on the same team. Redick said he consulted with the father and son to get their input on how they would like their first game together to play out.

“We had a few conversations about it,” Redick said. “I think everyone agrees. We want it to make some kind of sense, and we want it to happen naturally and in the flow of the game.”

“We wanted the 3 to come in. Bron threw it to him and of course we wanted it to go in. But when I saw them checking in at the scorer's table at the same time, I got a little goosebumps.”

Anthony Davis

The Lakers started the second quarter on a 29-12 run, with LeBron and Bronny leading a team that maintained the momentum.

“When we checked in, we had a job to do,” LeBron said. “We weren’t trying to make it a circus. We weren't trying to make it about ourselves. We wanted it to be about the team, about us going out there and continuing to play the game, the brand of basketball.” The coaching staff and our teammates wanted us to keep that up while we were on the floor.

On the same baseline where Bronny watched his father break Abdul-Jabbar's record, sat another father-son duo making history together. Ken Griffey Jr. and Ken Griffey Sr., the first father and son to play together in Major League Baseball, made an occasion of it.

“Knowing that these guys are going to be there tonight while me and Bronny are on the same team is a pretty cool moment in the history of sports,” LeBron said after the Lakers’ morning shootaround.

LeBron and Bronny took a quick break from pregame warmups to greet the Griffeys and pose for a photo on the court.

Tuesday's contest was the fourth time in professional sports that a father-son case occurred.

In addition to the Griffeys, the Jameses were joined by hockey star Gordie Howe in 1980, who played for the Hartford Whalers with two of his sons, Mark and Marty, the first time this family feat occurred in the NHL. Tim Raines and Tim Raines Jr. also took the field together for the Baltimore Orioles on October 4, 2001.

The Griffeys played together for the Seattle Mariners for two seasons, 1990 and 1991, and memorably hit back-to-back home runs on September 14, 1990.

“As my dad would say, you have to have longevity as an older guy and your son has to be pretty good to get there pretty quickly,” Ken Griffey Jr. told ESPN after the game.

The baseball slugger opened up about the origins of his relationship with fellow Nike signature athlete, LeBron James.

“LeBron’s first Christmas [in the NBA] “I was in Orlando and spending the time at my house,” he said. “So we've been friends since he was 18. I tell everyone, wherever they are, I’m a fan.”

The biggest gift for the Jameses on Tuesday beyond playing time together was that they were able to do this while winning.

“This is the first time we had a LeBron moment that was something great, and we won,” Davis said, referring to the milestones James achieved and achieved during losses. “All other things we’ve always lost, so it kind of kills the moment. But it was a special moment for everyone.”