LeBron James was — one of — if not the biggest high school basketball player in history as his games were on national TV and he was a household name before he ever stepped foot on an NBA floor.
Now, James gets to be on the outside looking in as his son Bronny James is one of the top high school players in America.
The 15-year-old stars at Sierra Canyon High School in California along with Zaire Wade, son of Dwyane Wade. James has been extremely supportive of his son, even drawing criticism in some corners, but has remained there every step of the way, including a very fun moment this weekend.
Sierra Canyon traveled to face St. Vincent-St. Mary High School, which of course is the alma mater of James and his son even hit the go-ahead layup late in the game. James spoke about the experience of watching his son, via ESPN:
“Everyone was kinda telling me it was almost like I was back in high school all over again watching my son play, so it was one of the greatest moments of my life so far.”
Of course, the conversation eventually turned to a familiar one of whether James would play with his son in the NBA one day. Though James wasn’t necessarily feeling up to it following the team’s win over the Atlanta Hawks, he left the door open:
“Uh… the way my body feels right now postgame? No, absolutely not. But, listen, through the grace of god and through the grace of health, we will see what happens.”
No one possibly in league history has taken better care of their body throughout their career than James and the fact that there is even a possibility of him being around when his son is in the NBA is a credit to that.
The younger James is only a freshman in high school and under the current rules that require one year of college, he wouldn’t be eligible until the 2024 NBA Draft.
A potential change to that rule could allow James to join the league a season earlier but even then, that would be following his father’s 20th season. Only seven players have played 20 seasons in the league with Vince Carter recently setting a new record by playing in his 22nd season.
For James to make history by playing with his son, he would need to reach a level that very few have done, but that is nothing new to him.