We have all been waiting for this moment. The LA Lakers made history this weekend with LeBron James and his son, Bronny, playing together in the same game, on the same team, in a pre-season match against the Phoenix Suns.
Pops scored 19 points in 16 minutes of play, while Bronny came up empty-handed in 13 minutes of play.
Ultimately, the icing on the cake was not to be had, with the Suns winning the game by 4 points (118 - 114).
King James, as LeBron James is affectionately known, turns 40 in a few months, Bronny turned 20 on Sunday, which also happened to be his birthday.
Being a father at 20 is what made it possible for the James father-son combo to exist. Today, with the average American woman having her first child at 27.3 years old, the future does not bode well for a familial repeat.
Bronny’s 17 year old brother, 6’6” Bryce, is still in high school, and also focused on making his way to the NBA. In theory, all 3 could play together if Bryce puts it all together and King James does not make an early exit. I don’t think it will happen. What do you think?
Most teens grow 7-10” during puberty, but stop sprouting at around age 16 – so it is likely that neither son will outflank his 6’9” father. Bronny is 7” shorter than his Dad, while Bryce is 3” shorter. Their mother, Savannah Brinson, James’ high school sweetheart, is 5’7” – just 3” taller than average.
Way back in 2003, LeBron James was the #1 NBA Draft Pick; now he’s beginning his 22nd NBA season, tied with Vince Carter for the most NBA seasons ever played. In July he signed a $104 million deal to stay with the Lakers for 2 more years.
The 55th overall pick in the 2nd round of the 2024 NBA Draft with a 4-year $7.9 million deal, Bronny James previously suffered a cardiac arrest while working out for USC and has made a miraculous recovery from a likely undiagnosed congenital heart condition, making Sunday’s father-son tag-team even more special.
Will Bronny surpass his father’s achievements? Unlikely, but every moment will be more precious now that he has survived a near fatal health scare. Plus, his story may pave the way for others to be aware of the importance of thorough cardiac testing when practicing exerting sports, not to forget the importance of knowing what to do when a cardiac arrest occurs. Do you know what to do?
Hands-only CPR combined with an AED (automated external defibrillator) is the ultimate solution, but CPR alone is also well worth employing if an AED is not available. It’s hard to believe that these techniques only emerged in the 1960s.
We should all refresh our understanding of these potentially life-saving methods every year. As they say: “use it or lose it”.
And when practicing what to do in case of such an emergency, it wouldn’t hurt to take a moment to be thankful to William Kouwenhoven, an American engineer of Dutch descent, who is known as the “Father of Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation”. Without “Wild Bill” many lives would have been lost, including Bronny’s.
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