Lakers News: Game 1 Plan for Bronny James Revealed

Ricardo Sandoval | Oct 22, 2024

Oct 18, 2024; San Francisco, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Bronny James (9) dribbles the ball against the Golden State Warriors in the second quarter at the Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images / Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images

The Los Angeles Lakers will tip off their season tonight against the Minnesota Timberwolves. 

It will be the first of the Lakers' 82 regular season games, and anticipation is at an all-time high. The focus for Tuesday's game is to get the first win of the season and snap their seven-game season opener losing streak. 

While that is the case, all eyes will also be on Lakers rookie guard Bronny James. All signs point to Bronny being on the roster on opening night and possibly getting a run-in alongside his father, future Hall of Famer LeBron James. 

ESPN's Shams Charania spoke on L.A.'s plan to get the father-son duo out on the court together. 

"I'm told it's very likely, and the Lakers plan that LeBron James, Bronny James make history as the first father-son duo to be on the court at the same time, and likely to come early in the game as long as it's competitive and it's a flowing game as far as where the Lakers are at early on in that game. I think that's going to be very important. The Lakers want to allow this to happen during the flow of the game in a competitive environment.”

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It's unclear at what point in the game it will happen, but it will likely happen on opening night against the Timberwolves. 

It will be a nice moment to witness, and the two will be making NBA history. Not only that, but another father-son duo from a different sport will also be in attendance: Ken Griffey Jr. and Ken Griffey Sr.

“I’m actually going to go to the game, I’m going to take my dad,” Griffey Jr. told Jon Paul Morosi on the Road to Cooperstown podcast for MLB Network Radio. “First father and son to play baseball, now the first father and son to play basketball, so it’s a big deal for my dad and I to be there. We made history, now we get to watch history, so that’s what’s going to be cool about it.”

The 20-year-old struggled mightily in his first five preseason games, scoring eight points total on 4-for-20 shooting (0-for-7 from 3) with five turnovers. However, his final game showed what he can become in the NBA. On Friday night against the Warriors, Bronny scored 17 points on 7-for-17 shooting with four rebounds, three steals, and one block in 35 minutes.

Bronny will play for a few minutes against the T-Wolves, but after that, he will likely be sent down to the G League, where he will play for most of the season. 

Tip-off is at 7 p.m. PT. 

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