LeBron James is going to play with his son, Bronny, after all.
ESPN is reporting LeBron, 39, has agreed to a two-year contract worth a maximum of $104 to return to the Los Angeles Lakers after opting out of his contract last week. The deal includes a no-trade clause, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
LeBron’s imminent return to the Lakers was never in doubt. While there was some speculation about him possibly coming to Phoenix or wherever Bronny was drafted, LeBron’s ties to the Lakers were too strong to leave Los Angeles now that his own son and namesake is on the team.
Days after the historic selection made them the league’s first father-son tandem, the four-time NBA champion turned to X to appreciate the moment.
“With the 55th pick in the 2024 NBA draft, the Los Angeles Lakers select… Bronny James,” the Lakers star wrote with six tear-smiling emojis. “I just had a moment!”
LeBron James’ deal includes a no-trade clause, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski
Bronny James has chosen to wear the No. 9 jersey for the Purple and Gold, as announced Tuesday.
Although James’ critics have pushed him to retire, his statistics have remained at All-Star level as he enters his 22nd NBA season.
A third-team All-NBA selection in 2023-24, James averaged 25.7 points and 7.3 rebounds per game while shooting a career-best 41 percent of his 3-point attempts.
Amazingly, LeBron and Bronny already rank as the highest-scoring father-son duo in NBA history, even though the latter has yet to score a single point.
Thanks to LeBron’s NBA-record 40,474 points, the duo leads Kobe and Joe ‘Jellybean’ Bryant (38,895 points), Steph and Dell Curry (36,338), Klay and Mychal Thompson (28,341) and Rick and Brent Barry (26,883).
But it’s unclear when, if ever, Bronny will be able to contribute at the NBA level.
His college career at USC was delayed by a cardiac arrest he suffered in 2023. And though doctors cleared him to return, Bronny remained on the periphery of the Trojans’ rotation in his only collegiate season.
He averaged just 4.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.1 assists as his team finished with a 15-18 record, finishing ninth in the Pac-12.
However, Bronny entered the draft, where he was eventually selected 55th overall, by Los Angeles.
After failing to sign UConn’s Dan Hurley, the Lakers gave JJ Redick the head coaching job.
Bronny averaged just 4.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 25 games for the Trojans.
Bronny and LeBron will be the first father-son duo to play together in the NBA
The Lakers are banking on Bronny’s reputation as a hard-working player.
“I think you’ve worked incredibly hard, man,” Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka told him in a behind-the-scenes video before the pick. “You’ve worked incredibly hard.”
‘When we have lunch at your training facility, we talk about your work ethic and that means a lot to us.’
“I think you’re a high-character player and a high-character person, and that’s valued at the Lakers,” he continued. “It’s important for Coach Redick and I to let you know that those qualities really stand out.”
‘And then the Lakers are going to select you with the 55th pick.’
The Lakers fell to the Denver Nuggets, 4-1, in the first round of the NBA playoffs last season.
The rookie will make his debut with the organization during the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas on July 6.