LeBron teams up with Bronny for Lakers workout

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. (AP) — LeBron James and his son Bronny are already training with the remainder of the Los Angeles Lakers during voluntary offseason workouts. JJ Redick and his coaching staff are planning and discussing a moment early in the brand new season when father and son will share an NBA court for the primary time.

While the small print of that historic day are still unknown, Redick shares the basketball world’s anticipation of watching the perfect scorer in NBA history play next to Lakers’ recent second-round draft pickNo father and son have ever played within the NBA at the identical time, let alone on the identical team.

“We don’t have anything planned, per se, in terms of a commitment to do it that way,” Redick said. “We’ve obviously talked about it as a staff and we’ve worked out some details of what that might look like, but we haven’t committed to anything, and obviously there’s a discussion to have once we’re all together, with Bronny and LeBron as well. They should be part of that discussion as well.”

Redick and general manager Rob Pelinka expressed their excitement in regards to the partnership during Wednesday’s preseason press conference. Redick sees only positives within the duo’s on-court connection and doesn’t anticipate any friction or concerns within the family dynamic.

“I don’t see it as a challenge any different than any other challenge of coaching a player or coaching a relationship,” Redick said.

Pelinka then jokingly threw in an anecdote from a recent practice: “Maybe the challenge is Bronny, when, like in our exhibition game, he got plugged into LeBron, and LeBron took him baseline, up and under the glass. The words they exchanged afterward were probably harder than anything.”

Lifestyle

The Lakers haven’t announced or made a call on how long Bronny, who turns 20 during training camp, will play on the NBA roster alongside his famous father, who turns 40 in December.

Although the front office has not confirmed it, Bronny James will likely spend a lot of the upcoming season within the G League developing his skills. He played in just 25 games during his lone season on the University of Southern California after recovery after cardiac arrest during off-season training.

Pelinka and Redick remain very optimistic in regards to the 6-foot-11 Bronny’s ability to play within the NBA.

“Bronny, I feel very fortunate to coach him because he’s young and hungry and has a lot of natural ability that we can really mold into a really good NBA player,” Redick said. “And he’s a fantastic kid. He’s incredibly coachable. He’s got the right spirit and energy every day.”

LeBron James took a vacation after leading the USA to the gold medal on the Olympic Games in Paris, but he’s been back within the gym for two weeks now, Redick said.

According to Pelinka, the Lakers didn’t make any daring moves this summer, limited by the contracts of their top players and the brand new league system that made it rather more difficult to enhance their rosters.

So the Lakers roster across the James family will largely be the identical group that made it to the Western Conference Finals in 2023 but finished eighth within the West last spring before losing to Denver in the primary round. Those Lakers weren’t elite teams, even with the wonderful health of LeBron and Anthony Davis, two veterans with significant mileage who’ve dealt with significant injury issues in previous seasons.

Pelinka said he could be open to moving two tradeable first-round picks if he saw a suggestion that may lead to “sustainable excellence for the Lakers.” He would also move one pick for “a slight improvement if we felt it was the right thing to do.”

Rui Hachimura, Gabe Vincent and Jalen Hood-Schifino are healthy for training camp, but not all might be ready for practice next week.

Christian Wood might be re-evaluated in six weeks following surgery on his left knee earlier this month.

Pelinka also revealed that Jarred Vanderbilt, a defensive end who played in just 29 games last season due to a foot injury, underwent successful “procedures” on each feet at the beginning of the offseason. The forward continues to be recovering, but Pelinka said he’s optimistic that Vanderbilt might be able to play on Opening Night on Oct. 22.