Ja Morant reacts to LeBron James and Bronny James' official debut as Lakers teammates
LA Lakers superstar forward LeBron James and his son, Lakers rookie guard Bronny James, made history by suiting up together during Tuesday's season opener. The milestone sparked commendatory sentiments across the NBA world, including from Memphis Grizzlies star point guard Ja Morant.
With 4:00 remaining in the second quarter of Tuesday's home matchup against the Minnesota Timberwolves, LeBron and Bronny checked in together. In doing so, they became the first father-son duo in league history to appear in the same game.
The historic moment elicited a raucous standing ovation from Lakers fans. While LeBron started the contest and played 13 minutes prior, Bronny, the No. 55 pick in this year's NBA draft, played his first regular-season minutes.
Shortly after, Morant took to X/Twitter and reacted to a clip of LeBron and Bronny's landmark achievement with a flame emoji.
However, Bronny's opening stint on the court was short-lived. He subbed out after only three minutes, missing both his shot attempts, and didn't re-enter the game.
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LeBron James and Lakers secure victory in Bronny James' debut
Ahead of Tuesday's showdown against the Timberwolves, Lakers coach JJ Redick touched on his plan to play LeBron James and Bronny James together.
Redick noted that he wanted to orchestrate the momentous father-son moment without causing a distraction for his team.
"We had a couple of conversations around it," Redick said. "I think everybody is on the same page. We want it to sort of make sense, and we want it to happen naturally and in the flow of a game."
LA built an early double-digit lead, seemingly creating the perfect opportunity for Bronny to sub in. Upon the rookie's second-quarter entrance, his squad was ahead by 16 points.
While Bronny finished with a plus-minus of minus-5 over three minutes, it proved relatively inconsequential. The Lakers ultimately secured a 110-103 victory, led by superstar center Anthony Davis' game-high 36 points, 16 rebounds and three blocks.
LA (1-0) next hosts the Phoenix Suns (0-0) on Friday, marking Bronny's next chance to score his first regular-season points.
Across six preseason outings, he averaged 4.2 points, 1.7 rebounds, 0.3 assists and 0.5 steals per game, shooting 29.7%.
Photo: Generations of greatness as LeBron James and Bronny James join Ken Griffeys for iconic photo