Lakers’ LeBron James Doesn’t Want Bronny Calling Him ‘Dad’ on Court

LeBron James comments on how his newest L.A. teammate should address him.

Feb 7, 2023; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (6) celebrates with his son Bronny James after breaking the all-time scoring record in the third quarter against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports / Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

The National Basketball Association's all-time leading scorer in points has accomplished everything the league has to offer. Just recently the Los Angeles Lakers led by James won the NBA's inaugural In-Season tournament.

In June of 2024 James would add another accolade to his resume as his Los Angeles Lakers drafted his son Bronny James out of the University of Southern California. The 55th pick in this year's draft is set to team up with James making them the first active father-son duo in professional basketball history.

Despite the backlash, nepotism police, and media opinions the 39-year old NBA veteran is excited for the opportunity play alongside his son.

"I've done it all as an individual, but there's no greater accomplishment that will be able to overtake me being able to be on the same floor as my son. It's the greatest thing that's ever happened.”

On his popular web series the 'The Shop' co-hosted with his business partner Maverick Carter, James addressed the popular question about what he expects Bronny to call him while they are on the court together.

In a snippet that was released on social media, James said there is no shot he is letting Bronny call him 'dad' on the court.

"[Bronny] can't call me dad in the workplace... He's gotta call me 2-3, or Bron, or GOAT if he wants to... Can’t be running down the court like, 'Dad, I'm open!'"

Is @KingJames cool with Bronny calling him “Dad” on the court? 👀🏀#TheShop Live From Paris premieres this Thursday, 8/29 on our YouTube channel!

Presented by @Nike. pic.twitter.com/96Yh3TRYmn

— The Shop (@TheShopUN) August 27, 2024

The on-court dynamic between James and Bronny has been a fun conversation for NBA fans during the offseason. On the NBA subreddit, a user named Hopeless Moderate asked fellow Reddit users whether Bronny would address LeBron as "Dad" when they are on the court. This sparked a ton of conversation on X after a LeBron fan page took the Reddit thread to Elon Musk's social media platform.

Nah this is a legit question😭 pic.twitter.com/KmPyeWAwJN

— ²³𝙻𝚎𝙱𝚛𝚘𝚗𝚌𝚑𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚜🏀☄️🌎💞 (@BronGotGame) June 24, 2024

Bronny James is aware of the attention he's had to endure being the son of this generations most polarizing athlete. The Lakers second round pick does not focus on narratives as he attempts to carve out his own legacy in this league. In his first press conference as a Laker Bronny talked about the idea of playing along side his father.

“For me, I always try to put that narrative [aside], trying to get my name out myself.," Bronny James said. "I've never really had a thought of me going to play with my dad. That's always there … but it wasn't a main focus of mine.”

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