EL SEGUNDO — LeBron James Jr.’s world looked a little different on Monday.
LeBron James wasn’t in the room.
Bronny paused, collecting his thoughts when a reporter posed the question on the minds of onlookers at the team’s practice facility or watching live online.
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“Ummmm,” the 21-year-old said as he threw his right arm in the air as if to say, “I don’t know,” while he held the microphone inches from his mouth, delaying an inevitable response.
“Feels like,” James said, “feels like he’s not here.”
James continued: “That’s my dad. It’s been 22 years almost living with him. Just another experience that I’m gonna be a part of and excited to see how it’s going to feel during the season too.”
The next – and first – time father and son will play against one another will be Christmas Day at Crypto.com Arena when the Lakers host the Philadelphia 76ers. Bronny James said there wasn’t much conversation with his father over his decision to leave the Lakers after eight seasons and head East, where he will potentially conclude his career.
“We’re men of very little words when it comes to talking about business and what we’re going to do and how we feel about each other, so there wasn’t really much (conversation) to be honest with you,” James said. “He’s got his own path and I got my own. So he knows that I want to make a name for myself and continue my career and keep growing as a player. And he knows that I want to focus on that.”
When James entered the league there was a clear disdain from some in the basketball community as to why the undersized 3-and-D guard was selected as the Lakers’ second-round pick in the 2024 NBA Draft.
As a bench role player for USC during his freshman season, James averaged 4.8 points per game in 19.3 minutes after recovering from cardiac arrest – caused by a congenital heart defect – during a preseason practice in June 2023.
Naysayers believed two things: James’ opportunity with the Lakers came from his father’s status as arguably the greatest basketball player of all time – and that he wasn’t talented enough to make the step from the college game to the NBA.
He made his NBA debut at the first opportunity, making history as the first father-son duo to play in the same game together in the 2024-25 season opener. Over the next two years, they shared the court on occasion as Bronny James spent most of his first two NBA seasons splitting time between the Lakers and the G League’s South Bay Lakers.
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Last season, as the Lakers struggled through late-season injury woes, James stepped up out of necessity.
He clawed his way into rotational minutes, eventually becoming a part of the postseason rotation for the first-round playoff series against the Houston Rockets. James played in a career-high 41 regular-season games and spent occasional time as a primary ball handler for the Lakers after Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves suffered late-season injuries.
James’ $2.3 million contract became fully guaranteed for the 2026-27 season in June (the Lakers hold a team option for the 2027-28 campaign). And James said on Monday – mentioning he’s been picking the brain of new teammate Collin Sexton – that he’s ready to carve out a more consistent role with the team – and continue to forge his own identity.
“I think I just need to take everything that I did well, all the mistakes that I made during the playoffs and stuff like that when I was given the opportunity and learn from them and take that into training camp,” James said. “And yeah, just keep growing every day and learning from my teammates that have been in the league longer than me.”
During the offseason, James said he zeroed in on becoming a better ball handler and improving his decision-making should he be asked to bring the ball up the court when Reaves and Doncic are off the floor. James’ goal, he added, is to be relentless on both sides of the court.
On defense, he said he hopes to inspire disruptive traits from his teammates by showcasing intent during his minutes.
The skeptics will remain.
His legacy is his existence.
But how does James envision this new chapter of his life?
“You guys know me as Bronny and my real name is LeBron,” he said. “I’ve been doing this for however long, so I think it’s a motivating factor for me just getting up every day and trying to prove myself as Bronny instead of LeBron.”
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