LeBron and Bronny James make NBA history with father-son appearance

23 Oct 2024, 06:54 by AFP · The42

LEBRON AND BRONNY James made NBA history on Tuesday, becoming the first father and son to play alongside each other in a regular season fixture as the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Minnesota Timberwolves 110-103.

The duo, who played together briefly in a pre-season game earlier this month, took to the court late in the second quarter at the Crypto.com Arena with the Lakers leading 51-35.

An enormous roar went up from the home crowd as the James duo approached the scorers table to check into the game after the Lakers had surged into a double-digit lead.

As James and his son prepared to enter the court, James Sr could be heard telling Bronny: “You ready? You see the intensity, right? Just play carefree though.”

In a perfectly scripted moment that was pure Hollywood, the James’ double-act was watched at courtside by Ken Griffey Sr and Ken Griffey Jr, who made baseball history playing for the Seattle Mariners as father and son in 1990-1991.

“That moment — us checking in together — is something I’ll never forget, no matter how old I get, how my memory may fade as I get older or whatever. I will never forget that moment,” said LeBron, who had started Tuesday by celebrating the 10th birthday of his daughter Zhuri Nova.

“Everything was just great today, everything — from the moment I woke up,” he added.

“Obviously this is the first time in this beautiful history of the NBA that a father and son have been on the same floor, let alone on the same team. It was pretty cool.”

Bronny’s debut for the Lakers was subdued. The 20-year-old spent 2min 41sec on court, taking two unsuccessful shots from the field before being replaced.

He expressed gratitude for the supportive “energy” shown by Lakers fans.

“I try not to focus on everything that’s going on around me. I was trying to focus on trying not to mess up. But I totally did feel the energy,” Bronny said.

Elsewhere, Jayson Tatum scored 37 points as the Boston Celtics launched the defence of their NBA crown with an emphatic 132-109 defeat of the New York Knicks.

After a triumphant pre-game ceremony that saw Boston celebrate raising their record-breaking 18th championship banner, the Celtics delivered a performance that suggested they could well be the team to beat once more.

A devastating 43-point first quarter put Boston in complete control during the first half, with Tatum producing an electric shooting performance to pour in 18 points from three-point range over the two quarters.

Tatum had brought the house down in a pre-game address to a packed TD Garden, signalling the Celtics’ determination to win back-to-back championships and he was pleased with the way the team then got right down to business.

“I’m really proud of the way we played. Tonight was emotional — a celebration of what we accomplished last year,” said Tatum.

The Celtics have retained the core of the team from last season’s roster and look well-positioned to mount a serious defense of their title.

Against New York on Tuesday, Joe Mazzulla’s team picked up where they had left off in June, with all of their heavy-hitters coming up big to leave the Knicks chasing the game for long periods.

Four of the their five starters — Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Derrick White and Jrue Holiday — posted double-digit points tallies before half-time, helping the team take a commanding 74-55 lead into the break.

Although the Knicks had enjoyed parity in a 31-31 second quarter, Boston were in no mood to let their advantage slip after the break, coasting home to close out the win.

Tatum finished with 10 assists and four rebounds in addition to his 37 points, with White adding 24 points and Brown 23. Holiday added 18 while Al Horford chipped in with 11.

Jalen Brunson led the Knicks scoring with 22 points, alongside Miles McBride with 22 from the bench.

Tatum was frustrated with a series of missed three-pointers from the team in the fourth quarter but praised his team’s ability to switch focus after the festivities.

“The transition from last year (that) was special and tonight (too). But it’s kind of like we’ve got to put it behind us. We got our rings, raised the banner and now it’s on to the next season. We’ve got to get ready for Washington on Thursday now,” he added.