If LeBron James Sr. and his son, Bronny, make NBA history by playing together for the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday night, Ken Griffey Sr. and Ken Griffey Jr. will be there to see it.
The Griffeys, the first father-son duo to play in Major League Baseball, plan to attend the Lakers’ season opener in downtown Los Angeles. The entire crowd will be hoping that the James family achieves this rare milestone in the NBA.
“First father and son to play baseball, (and) now the first father and son to play basketball,” the younger Griffey told MLB Network Radio. “It’s a big deal for my dad and I to be there. We made history. Now we get to watch history, so that’s what’s going to be cool about it.”
Bronny James is already looking forward to his official NBA debut, and the presence of the Griffeys adds even more excitement for the Lakers’ second-round pick.
“Yeah, it’s gonna be insane,” the 20-year-old Bronny said after practice on Monday at the Lakers’ training facility. “I mean, only two families to do it, so it’s going to be a crazy experience, especially (with) what they’ve done.”
Bronny made it clear that he’s not sure if he will actually play against the Minnesota Timberwolves, and Lakers coach JJ Redick mentioned that “nothing has been finalized or anything” regarding Los Angeles’ lineup.
However, it seems unlikely the Lakers will delay the historic moment they have been planning since they picked Bronny with the 55th overall pick this summer so he could play alongside LeBron, the 39-year-old leading scorer in NBA history.
The father and son have already played together in the preseason, first stepping onto the court together outside Palm Springs earlier this month.
A father and son playing together happens about once in a generation in North American professional sports. The Griffeys did this in 1990 and 1991, playing 51 games for the Seattle Mariners, and even hit home runs in the same game on September 14, 1990.
Tim Raines and his son also played four games together for the Baltimore Orioles at the end of the 2001 season. Before that, Gordie Howe played with his sons Mark and Marty in the WHA and NHL, as well as for Team Canada in the 1970s.
Bronny grew up in his father’s locker rooms and arenas in Cleveland, Miami, and Los Angeles, so he’s ready to move past this historic moment and focus on becoming a valuable NBA player. The Lakers start the season with three home games in five days.
“I think it will be different,” Bronny said about the opener. “No different than me getting ready for any other game, but just a feeling of being in our home arena for the first time and playing a game will be a special experience. … I’m just trying to come in and get better every day, learn from the guys that have been here before me. Just take it all in and enjoy the experience.”
Bronny played in all six of the Lakers’ preseason games, but his average of 4.2 points per game was greatly boosted by his 17-point performance in last week’s preseason finale, where both the Lakers and Warriors rested most of their key players.
Bronny made 29.7% of his shots in the preseason while averaging 1.7 rebounds and 0.3 assists, playing 16.2 minutes each game. His defensive skills were praised by Redick, who believes the 6-foot-2 guard can become a strong perimeter player in the future.
“Had some bad games, some rough starts, so (I’ve been) just continuing to play my game and play hard,” Bronny said.
Bronny is not expected to be an immediate rotation player for the Lakers, who already have D’Angelo Russell, Gabe Vincent, and 2023 first-round pick Jalen Hood-Schifino ahead of him at point guard. There’s a good chance Bronny will start the season with the Lakers before going to the G League to get the regular playing time he likely needs to improve.
But he’s still excited to reach this important milestone — and he even has a plan for what he’ll call his father on the court after LeBron told him not to use “Dad.”
“Probably Bron,” Bronny said with a smile. “That will probably be the easiest one.”
