LeBron James will get to live out one of his final unfulfilled dreams of his basketball career this upcoming season, playing with his son Bronny after the Lakers took him with the 55th overall pick.
The duo will become the NBA’s first father-son combo to play in the same game, doing something that’s only ever really been seen in baseball. Bronny isn’t the only son of LeBron’s with NBA aspirations, as Bryce James also plays shooting guard and is coming off of his junior year in high school. Bryce James is a 3-star prospect, per 247 Sports, ranked 163rd overall in the nation as a prospect, which means his path to the NBA isn’t exactly assured (even if the family name will get him plenty of attention). Still, LeBron starred in a commercial a year ago that teased that he’d like to play with both of his sons, so there’s some wonder if he’ll try to play all the way until Bryce (a rising senior in high school) is draft eligible.
That would be at least two more years, if Bryce goes one-and-done, and when the youngest of James’ sons was asked about playing with his dad on an IG live, he explained very matter of factly that he didn’t see that as a real possibility.
I asked Bryce James if he thinks LeBron would wait for him to get drafted before retiring. His response:
“That’s OD… he’s gonna be 42 bro.”
😂😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/wRVfqqlXQO
— Lakers All Day Everyday (@LADEig) June 29, 2024
“They asked if my dad’s still gonna be in the league when I get drafted. That’s too much. Nah. Nah. Cause, what? He’s 39…He gonna be 42, bro,” Bryce James said.
It wouldn’t be completely unheard of for someone to play until they were 42, but it certainly would be rare. LeBron hasn’t offered any strong indications of when he’ll call it a career, besides hinting at it last year after getting swept in the Conference Finals when he was very tired and frustrated. The most recent reporting has said he’ll likely be taking things year-by-year. He could play three more seasons, but Bryce certainly isn’t banking on it (and also might realize his path to the league might not take just two years).