Bronny James made his NBA debut in the second quarter of the Los Angeles Lakers opening game of the 2024-25 NBA season against the Minnesota Timberwolves. He entered the game alongside his father: 22-year NBA veteran LeBron James.
The younger James, 20, received a thunderous applaud as soon he stood up from the Lakers bench. He earned his first touch a few possessions later, ultimately passing to his father.
TNT”s audio crew mic’d up the elder James for the contest and picked up LeBron’s message to his son before checking in.
“Y’all ready? Let’s see the intensity, right? Just play carefree though. Don’t worry about, mistakes just go out and play hard.”
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Bronny James appeared for 2:41 in the second quarter, missing two shots (including one three-pointer) and grabbing an offensive rebound. The Lakers were -5 with him on the floor.
Los Angeles selected the younger James with the 55th pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, signing him to a four-year, $7.9 million partially guaranteed contract.
He first appeared on the court alongside his father for four minutes during the team’s October 6 preseason contest against the Phoenix Suns.
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LeBron James was asked about the pressure of the moment occurring in a real NBA game during the Lakers’ shootaround on Tuesday morning. The 39-year-old veteran seemed cool in the face of a historic moment.
“Whenever it happens, it will happen,” the elder James said. “If it’s tonight or if it’s down the line, whenever it happens, it will happen.”
“But it’s been a treat, and just in preseason, the practices, just every day … just bringing him up to speed of what this professional life is all about and how to prepare every day as a professional.”
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Bronny James struggled for most of the NBA preseason, averaging 4.1 points on 29.7% shooting to go along with 1.6 rebounds in 16.2 minutes per game..
Despite his struggles, first-year coach J.J. Redick was still impressed by the second-round rookie. “He’s a very grounded young man who is very coachable and has a very good head on his shoulders,” he said.
“I’m sure there’s some amazing things that come with being him. There [are] probably some hard things that come with being him, too. And I think he’s handled it with a lot of class and grace.”
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