During All-Star weekend in Cleveland, Los Angeles Lakers small forward LeBron James told Jason Lloyd of The Athletic that his final season in the NBA will be played with his son, Bronny James.
Bronny, a junior at Sierra Canyon High School in California, won’t be draft-eligible until the 2024 draft unless the NBA allows players to enter the league straight out of high school again.
LeBron becomes an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2023 and the four-time Finals MVP admitted to Lloyd that he’ll do “whatever it takes to play with my son for one year.”
“My last year will be played with my son. Wherever Bronny is at, that’s where I’ll be,” LeBron said. “I would do whatever it takes to play with my son for one year. It’s not about the money at that point.”
LeBron’s future with the Lakers has been a hot topic lately since the LakeShow have been a walking disaster this season and the four-time MVP is getting older. Some NBA insiders believe Los Angeles should trade LeBron this offseason and get draft picks and impact players in return since the King can leave in 2023.
LeBron recently told reporters that he wants to be “with the purple and gold as long as I can play.” However, he also admitted again during the same press conference that he wants to play with Bronny.
“I see myself being with the purple and gold as long as I can play, but also, I have a goal that if it’s possible, and I don’t even know if it’s possible, but if I can play with my son, I would love to do that,” LeBron said. “That’s like the coolest thing that could possibly happen. That doesn’t mean I don’t want to be with this franchise.”
LeBron turns 40 on December 30, 2024, the year Bronny could be in the NBA. It’s currently unknown what teams think of Bronny since he’s still in high school, but Dallas Mavericks governor Mark Cuban feels LeBron is being “super smart” with how he’s talking about his son.
Cuban on LeBron: He’s Super Smart
During a recent appearance on the “Pardon My Take” podcast, Cuban called it a “super smart” move by LeBron to get more teams interested in his son by saying he wants to play with him.
The Akron Hammer probably won’t be the best player in the NBA when he’s 40, but he’s averaging 29.0 points at the age of 37, so his decline likely won’t be too steep and teams will still be interested in signing him.
There could be a team that drafts Bronny with a high pick in the first round just to get LeBron’s services. Cuban believes LeBron’s quote to Lloyd at All-Star weekend was a savvy move for that reason alone.
It’s going to be fascinating to see what team drafts Bronny and if LeBron can join that club to play with his son. LBJ has been making history ever since he was drafted in 2003, so it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him make history again with his son.
No Father and Son Have Played Together in the NBA
LeBron and Bronny would be the first father-son duo in NBA history. The former, who is the only player to rank top-10 all-time in points and assists and will likely pass Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on the NBA’s all-time scoring list in 2022-23, has a strong desire to play with his son in the pros and doesn’t seem to care what other people think about it.
For now, LeBron has to focus on turning the Lakers around. They are in ninth place in the Western Conference standings and likely won’t win the title.
However, you can tell by his words that LeBron is already thinking about his son’s future, which isn’t a surprise since he’s a great father.
Comments
Mark Cuban Sounds off on LeBron James’ Recent ‘Super Smart’ Move