'Bronny doesn't have to play': LeBron James glad he does because father-son duo 'pretty special'
Bronny James is the son of a billionaire. He doesn't need to be busting his butt trying to prove himself as a Lakers rookie or a player on the team's G League affiliate.
"Bronny doesn't have to play basketball at all," LeBron James said on this week's episode of Jason and Travis Kelce's "New Heights" podcast. "It's not like he needs the money. He can do whatever he wants to do.
"Like, if he wants to be the CEO of my company, he could be that. I’ll start teaching him right now to be that if he wants to. But he’s like, ‘This is my career ... my goals and ... aspirations and I want to play ball. This is something I love.’"
James added: "I love that kid. He’s awesome.”
The Lakers superstar from Akron joined his fellow northeast Ohio natives —the Kelces grew up in nearby Cleveland Heights before achieving stardom with the Philadelphia Eagles (Jason) and Kansas City Chiefs (Travis) — for an hourlong discussion that covered topics such as James' NFL dreams and his experience playing in a pickup game with Michael Jordan at age 16.
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Bronny's name came up when Jason Kelce asked what LeBron considered his greatest achievement outside of his four NBA championships.
“When it comes to the titles that’s one separate thing," James said, "but to be able to be in this league and play in this league and also being able to do it alongside Bronny right now, that’s like one of the biggest accomplishments and probably the No. 1 accomplishment."
James said the reason he feels that way isn't simply because he's been able to last 22 seasons in the NBA and play into his 40s.
"Like, to work with your son — I’ve heard from a lot of people, not only sports but I’ve heard it in business and [other] walks of life, and they say it’s the greatest thing you can ever, ever have," James said. "To see him every day grinding and going through the process of trying to become who he wants to become ... and doing the things that he wants to do and being able to just take it all in, it helps me get some of the minutes and hours and years that I did not have with him because I was playing so much and on the road doing my own thing.
"So to be able to get some of this time back now, man, it’s pretty special.”
James already was a national phenomenon before he graduated from high school, appearing on ESPN and on the cover of Sports Illustrated and other magazines while leading St. Vincent-St. Mary to three state titles in four years. He went straight to the NBA and was the No. 1 pick by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2003 draft. On Feb. 8, 2023, James surpassed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the league's leading scorer.
Bronny's high school career was closely followed by the national media as well, but much of that had to do with his famous dad who had happened to mention that he wouldn't mind playing with his oldest son in the NBA one day. Still, Bronny was a consensus four-star recruit and McDonald's All-American at Sierra Canyon and signed to play at USC. He suffered sudden cardiac arrest during a summer workout in 2023 but recovered to make his Trojans debut that December. In 25 games with USC, he averaged 4.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.1 assists.
The Lakers selected Bronny with the 55th pick in last year's draft, and on opening night, he and LeBron became the first father-son duo to share an NBA floor. Bronny has since split his time between the Lakers (averaging 2.4 minutes over nine games) and the South Bay Lakers (averaging 14.7 points, 4.4 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 27.9 minutes over nine games).
Travis Kelce mentioned the poise with which Bronny has handled his situation. His dad couldn't have agreed more, saying that his son has had to deal with even more scrutiny than he did at that age.
Read more: $38,400 for a Bronny James jersey? To collector, he’s next chapter of Lakers’ storied history
"I didn’t have to deal with the social media trolls growing up," James said. "And I didn’t have to deal with my father being this f— guy on the pedestal. Bronny has to deal with all of that. And if you ever meet Bronny, you’ll be like, ‘I'm such an idiot to look down on him or not want him to do great.’
"He is the most chill, easy, fun kid in the world. He goes to work, he goes home, he takes care of his body, he plays his video games, he reads a little bit and then he comes back and does the same thing. ... But he’s dealing with all that too, but I think that’s going to make him be even greater."
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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
