Los Angeles Lakers rookie Bronny James got his first ever NBA bucket last week on the road against the Cleveland Cavaliers. It was a moment that meant so much to him and his father as he grew up in the area while LeBron James was playing for the Cavaliers.
One person that took notice of the moment and was impacted by it was Sacramento Kings head coach Mike Brown. The James family and Brown have a long history, as the current Kings leads was the head coach of the Cavaliers from 2005-10, a majority of LeBron’s first tenure with the team.
He got to see Bronny growing up first-hand and now got to watch with pride as he scored his first NBA bucket on the very same court. Brony spoke about what that moment meant to him and what he believes it meant for the entire James family, via Leigh Ellis of Basketball Passport:
“I tell you what, that’s just poetic. You couldn’t ask for anything better for both of those guys and the rest of the family. And the fans from Cleveland and Akron, it’s just storybook. It continues to be a story, which it should be. When we played them, I tell you, I got a kick out of — I think it was on Instagram — when LeBron filled Bronny’s car up with cereal. I died laughing, because when I was head coach in Cleveland, our vets did it to one of our rookies back in the day. So to see that happen to Bronny, especially by his dad, was pretty hilarious. Couldn’t ask for a better script to be written.”
So much has been made of Bronny being in the NBA, and the reception around it has generally been negative. But Brown gives a reminder of why it’s such a cool situation that Bronny is an NBA player and the types of moments that can come from that.
Bronny is likely to report to the G League once the Lakers get back from their current road trip, but he’ll do so having marked off some key milestones from his list.
Cavaliers gifted net from first basket to Bronny James
Players often keep a ball or something to remember big career moments and in this case it was the net, as Bronny James was left with the net from the basket in which he scored his first points with the Lakers.
It was a beautiful gesture by the Cavaliers, but one that shouldn’t be unexpected as the they will always have a connection to the James family.
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