Former Laker endorses Bronny James sporting No.9 jersey for Purple & Gold squad: "Let's gooo!!"
Bronny James has been the talk of town in the past 24 hours after the Los Angeles Lakers drafted him as the 55th pick in the second round of the 2024 NBA Draft, pairing him with his father LeBron James.
On Friday, the Lakers also revealed that Bronny will don the No. 9 jersey number for the Lakers, joining some of the greats who wore the same number before. One of those former Laker greats, former All-Star Nick Van Exel, gave the stamp of approval to Bronny by posting his response after the team’s announcement.
“Let’s gooooooo!!!!!!!” Van Exel posted.
A fellow second-round pick like Bronny, Van Exel was picked by the Lakers as the 37th selection of the 1993 NBA draft. Van Exel was the cornerstone of the team when they were trying to build off the pieces left by Magic Johnson and the Showtime Lakers.
From 1993 to 1998, Van Exel averaged 14.9 points, 2.8 rebounds, 7.3 assists, and 1.0 steals for the Lakers before being traded to the Denver Nuggets for Tony Battie and the draft rights for now Los Angeles Clippers coach Ty Lue.
Bronny and Van Exel share a similar build entering the league. Both stand at six-foot-one and rely heavily on their quickness and athleticism. However, unlike Bronny, who shot 26% from three in college, Van Exel was a sharpshooter from the long-range, shooting 36.45 from three in his time with the Lakers.
LeBron James expresses excitement over Van Exel’s tweet and Bronny’s jersey reveal
LeBron James has been one proud father throughout the draft process, helping his son Bronny to reach his NBA dreams. Now, with everything almost set in stone for their on-court pair-up, LeBron expressed how excited he was with Bronny’s jersey reveal and subsequent approval of Lakers’ legend Van Exel.
“That’s so TOUGH!! Nick the Quick was SO COLD!!!!! 🫡🤝🏾,” he wrote in response to Van Exel’s tweet.
James earlier showed his support for his son on Instagram, reposting the Lakers’ jersey number announcement.
“NO WORDS!! 🤴🏾,” James captioned.
James will only have until June 29 to sign his $51 million player option to return to the Lakers next season. Otherwise, he will enter unrestricted free agency, which could derail his team-up with Bronny in L.A. The Lakers, however, can still sign him to a new deal even if he declines his player option.
Once Bronny and LeBron play on the same court for the Lakers, they will become the first and only father-son duo to play together in NBA history.