PALM DESERT, Calif. (AP) — LeBron James and his son Bronny made NBA history Sunday night when they played together for the first time during the Los Angeles Lakers preseason game against Phoenix.

LeBron and Bronny are the first father and son to play in an NBA game at the same time, let alone on the same team. The James family’s remarkable moment happened to take place on Bronny’s 20th birthday.

Bronny James entered the game as a substitute to start the second quarter and joined his father on the court after the timeout at Acrisure Arena in the Coachella Valley.

Things didn’t immediately go smoothly for the James family, with Bronny committing two turnovers and LeBron committing another in their first two minutes together. Shortly after LeBron hit a three-pointer moments later, LeBron got the ball to Bronny and set a screen for his son’s three-point attempt, but Bronny missed.

Bronny came free for a sub at 4:09 of the second quarter, and LeBron came out on the next dead ball 25 seconds later. LeBron had 19 points, five rebounds and four assists in 16 minutes during the first half, and he watched the Lakers’ second half from the bench next to Anthony Davis.

LeBron James begins his record-breaking 22nd season in the NBA, while LeBron James Jr. – known to all as Bronny – was the Lakers’ second-round draft pick this summer. After recovery from cardiac arrest over a year agoBronny played just one season in Southern California before entering the draft and joining the Lakers.

Lakers coach JJ Redick said before the game that LeBron and Bronny would only play together “in the flow of the game,” and promised it wouldn’t be “gimmicky.”

“I’m excited about it,” Redick added. “I am very honored to be part of history.”

Bronny played about nine minutes in the second half, but didn’t have another chance in the Lakers’ 118-114 loss to the Suns.

The 6-foot-4 Bronny is expected to spend much of next season working on his game with the G League’s South Bay Lakers, but he will almost certainly be able to join his 6-foot-2 father in a real game to play. early in the regular season.

Redick said the Lakers have already discussed the logistics of the next historic moment, but he did not predict when it will happen.

Although LeBron will turn 40 at the end of December, the leading scorer in NBA history shows no signs of slowing down as he gets older. He has spoken for years about his longtime dream of playing in the NBA with one of his sons, and the Lakers made it a reality when they took Bronny with the 55th pick in the draft.

LeBron sat out the Lakers’ preseason opener against Minnesota last Friday night, resting after a full week of training camp following a busy summer. Bronny had two points on 1-for-6 shooting and three blocked shots during 16 minutes of play against the Timberwolves.

The Lakers have four more preseason games — all away from Los Angeles while their home arena is renovated — before starting the regular season at home against Minnesota on Oct. 22.

LeBron was early in his second NBA season with the Cleveland Cavaliers when he and his high school sweetheart, Savannah Brinson, became parents for the first time in 2004. They had two more children: son Bryce and daughter Zhuri.

LeBron and Bronny have been preparing for the chance to play together since LeBron returned from a summer vacation after winning a gold medal with the U.S. team at the Paris Olympics.

The father and son have fought together repeatedly during practices at the Lakers’ training facility, both as teammates and as opponents. Redick said they even ran pick-and-rolls together in preparation.

In the regular season, they join a short list of fathers and sons who have shared a playing field in North American professional sports. Ken Griffey Sr. and Ken Griffey Jr. played with the Seattle Mariners during parts of the 1990 and 1991 MLB seasons, while hockey great Gordie Howe played with his sons Marty and Mark for the WHA’s Houston Eros and the NHL’s Hartford Whalers.

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