Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James said he is committed to making his final NBA season a family affair, expressing a desire to play with his son Bronny James.
The 37-year-old four-time NBA champion, in Cleveland for this weekend’s All-Star Game, made the wholesome revelation during an interview with The Athletic published on Saturday.
‘My last year will be played with my son,’ James told the outlet. ‘Wherever Bronny is at, that’s where I’ll be. I would do whatever it takes to play with my son for one year. It’s not about the money at that point.’
Bronny James is a 17-year-old junior at Sierra Canyon High School in the Los Angeles area. It means the 6-foot-2 guard will not be NBA eligible until the 2024-25 season, when his father is 39.
LeBron is under contract with the Lakers through the 2022-23 season, leading to speculation that he would just sign a one-year deal once his current contract expires and then be open to signing with whatever team he desires in 2024-25.
LeBron has averaged 29.1 points in 41 games this season, his highest scoring average since scoring 30.0 points and leading the league in 2007-08 as a member of the Cleveland Cavaliers. He is also averaging 7.9 rebounds and 6.5 assists per game.
Sunday was the 18th All-Star Game for LeBron James, tying him with late Lakers star Kobe Bryant for second most all time.
LeBron James said during his final season in the NBA, he would like to play alongside his son Bronny, who currently is a 17-year-old junior at Sierra Canyon High School in the Los Angeles area
Bronny, pictured with his four-time NBA champion dad in 2012, will not be NBA eligible until the 2024-25 season, when LeBron is 39
The basketball star said he is not interested in accepting a discount after his current contract with the Los Angeles Lakers expires but said in the report he might make an exception to play alongside Bronny.
‘I’m not saying I’m coming back and playing, I don’t know,’ he said. ‘I don’t know what my future holds. I don’t even know when I’m free.’
Bronny, whose full name is LeBron James Jr, is the eldest of the Los Angeles Lakers star’s three children with his wife Savannah, 35.
Fourteen-year-old Bryce James, LeBron’s second child, is also reportedly trying to following in his father’s footsteps.
While Bronny is a year or more away from committing to a college, some of the top programs in the country are already taking a look.
Duke, Kansas, Kentucky and the University of North Carolina are all eyeing the Sierra Canyon High School junior, who was ranked 43rd by ESPN in their 2023 class of 60.
While Bronny is a year or more away from committing to a college, some of the top programs in the country such as Duke, Kansas, Kentucky and the University of North Carolina are already taking a look
Bronny, whose full name is LeBron James Jr, is the eldest of the Los Angeles Lakers star’s three children with his wife Savannah
Fourteen-year-old Bryce James (left in this 2018 family picture) is also reportedly trying to following in his father’s footsteps
‘Athletically, [Bronny] James is impressive and he’s continued to become more athletic over the last year,’ 247 Sports Director of Basketball Recruiting Evan Daniels wrote last year.
‘Where he impresses the most is with his feel for the game, vision and passing,’ he added.
‘James is also an impressive shooter with good shot mechanics. He’s comfortable pulling up for one and two dribble pull-ups, and has a lot of potential as a long-range shooter. It’s still early in the process, and ultimately his upside will be determined by his physical and skill growth.’
Though young Bronny shows tremendous promise on the court, 247 analyst Jerry Meyer said a big question remains how he responds mentally to the pressure of being the son of an NBA superstar.
‘What will be interesting to observe is how he deals with the intense pressure and scrutiny from being the son of Lebron James,’ Meyer said.
‘How he deals with that circumstance will have much to do with how good he becomes. He will have to go through a tough process of defining and becoming who he is as his own individual,’ the analyst added.
Nevertheless, Meyer said he expects Bronny ‘to develop into a quality high major player.’
‘And with his lineage, there is a strong reason to believe that he will have a blossoming physically and in his game in the upcoming years,’ he said.
Los Angeles Lakers’ LeBron James goes up for a reverse dink during the first half of the NBA All-Star basketball game on Sunday
The All-Star Game’s return to Cleveland was expected to be LeBron’s night. He is the Cavaliers franchise’s greatest player, having led them to their only NBA championship in 2016
The All-Star Game’s return to Cleveland was expected to be LeBron’s night. He is the Cavaliers franchise’s greatest player, having led them to their only NBA championship in 2016.
On a night both players were among the greats of the game who were honored during a halftime ceremony celebrating the NBA’s 75th anniversary team, Stephen Curry and LeBron showed why they continue to stand out among today’s best.
Curry finished 16 of 27 beyond the arc – sometimes well, well behind it. He launched a few from the All-Star 2022 logo near midcourt, running backward without even waiting to watch one go in.
The 3-point arc is slightly more than 23 feet away. Curry had made shots listed from 37, 33 and 34 feet during one stretch of the third quarter,
‘This guy is from a different planet. He literally has an automatic sniper connected to his arm, and when he lets it go, not only himself, but everybody on the floor, in the stands, on TV, on their phones, whatever you are watching on, you think it´s going in every time,’ James said.
‘Nine times out of 10 and sometimes 10 times out of 10, it does go in.
‘To be out there and watch that kid from Akron as well shoot the ball the way he shot it, it was unbelievable,’ James said. ‘It was pretty cool.’
