The Lakers’ LeBron James, left, and Bronny James play during the second quarter against the Minnesota Timberwolves in Los Angeles on Tuesday.

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Late in the second quarter of the Los Angeles Lakers’ season opener, LeBron and Bronny James stepped onto the basketball court and went down in history as the first father-son duo to play in an NBA game together, let alone on the same team .

It was a moment many years in the making.

The elder James, who was in his second NBA season when Bronny was born, started his season record-breaking 22nd season this week. The 39-year-old is the league’s all-time leading scorer and is widely considered one of the greatest basketball players of all time, with four NBA championships and four NBA MVP titles to his name.

He joined the Lakers in 2018. The team drafted the younger James (full name: LeBron James Jr.) as a second-round pick this summer after he only played one season with the University of Southern California.

The Jameses played together for the first time during a preseason game against the Phoenix Suns earlier this month, which coincidentally fell on Bronny’s 20th birthday. But the real record and fanfare came Tuesday when the Lakers took on the Minnesota Timberwolves in LA.

With four minutes left in the second quarter, both Jameses exchanged together in the gametaking off their warm-up jackets as the arena filled with cheers. A microphone recorded their exchange on the couch just in advance.

“You see the intensity, right?” LeBron asked, prompting a nod from Bronny. “But just play carefree. Don’t worry about mistakes, just go out there and play hard.”

The two the court shared about 2.5 minutes long, which was Bronny’s only playing time of the evening. He missed two shot attempts but had one rebound, while his father added 16 points, five rebounds and four assists.

The Lakers went on to win 110–103, LeBron’s first opening night victory in all his years with the team. But it was those few minutes of shared playing time that meant the most.

“It’s always been family, about everything. I’ve lost a lot of time because of this league and my dedication to this league, because sometimes I’m on the road and I’ve missed a lot of (Bronny’s) stuff, Bryce’s stuff and Zhuri’s stuff,” LeBron said in an interview. post-match interviewreferring to his children. “To be able to have this moment where I’m still working and working with my son is one of the greatest gifts I’ve ever received from the man above, and I’m going to take full advantage of it.”

Bronny said checking in at the judges’ table with his father was a “crazy moment that I’ll never forget,” adding, “I’m just extremely grateful for everything.”

Bronny’s debut was not without a playful hazing: earlier in the day, his father tweeted a Nike ad in which he fills his son’s car with cereal and then shouts, ‘Hey, Rook! You better not be late,” and tells him to clean up before driving away from the mess.

“Yes, are you serious?” Bronny responds, adding, “You’re too old for this.”

By coincidence it was also Tuesday the 10th anniversary from LeBron’s daughter (and Bronny’s sister) Zhuri, who was at the game. LeBron said later that made the day all the more special.

“Everything was just great today,” he said. “From the moment I woke up, I saw my daughter before she went to school. I went to work and saw my son working. Go to the game and just everything, man. The whole family. It was a great moment.”

Only a handful of other father-son duos have been teammates in North American professional sports

LeBron James, Ken Griffey Sr., Bronny James and Ken Griffey Jr. posed for a photo Tuesday as the Jameses became the first father-son pair to play together in the NBA. The Griffeys use the same distinction in the MLB.

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Also look at – and excited filming – from the stands on Tuesday were Ken Griffey Sr. and Ken Griffey Jr., the first father-son duo to play together in the MLB. They played for the Seattle Mariners in 1990 and 1991.

“It’s a big deal for my father and I to be there,” Griffey Jr. told The road to Cooperstown podcast earlier this week. “We made history, now we can look at history.”

The Jameses join a very short list of father-son duos who have played together in major American sports.

Hockey great Gordie Howe played with his sons Mark and Marty for the WHA’s Houston Eros in 1973-74 and the NHL’s Hartford Whalers in the 1979-80 season.

In August 2001, baseball player Tim Raines Sr. and Tim Raines Jr. the first father-son duo to play against each other in a professional regular season game when the Ottawa Lynx of the Triple-A International League played the Rochester Red Wings.

Baltimore Orioles left fielder Tim Raines Sr. poses with his son and teammate, midfielder Tim Raines Jr., before an October 2001 match.

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In October, a series of events – including a scheduling delay after September 11, injuries and a temporary trade by managers aware of Raines Sr.’s wishes – led to a series of events. to play with his son – sure both Raineses playing for the Baltimore Orioles during the last week of the season.

They played in four games together, two of which were together in the outfield.

“I had talked publicly for years about how I wanted to stay long enough to be with Tim Jr. at the same time. to play,” Raines Sr. wrote. – who retired after the 2002 season – in his 2017 autobiography. Rock solid. “It never really occurred to me that we would ever get a chance to play on the same team.”

Raines Sr. welcomed the Jameses to that club in a tweet on Wednesday morning.

“It was an absolute joy playing with my son,” he wrote. “Congratulations to (LeBron and Bronny) for making NBA history and experiencing that special moment together.”