With LeBron James and a number of his teammates ruled out for the Los Angeles Lakers' game against the Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday night, Lakers rookie Bronny James stepped into the spotlight.
James, 20, set or tied career highs in points (17), rebounds (three), assists (five), blocks (one) and minutes (30) in the Lakers' 118-89 loss to Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks.
The best game of the rookie's career was not enough to capture his father's full attention - at least not on social media, where LeBron chose to crown his other son, Bryce James, for a major milestone of his own.
While his brother was stealing the attention of NBA fans, 17-year-old Bryce was considering his own future.
He posted a farewell message after the conclusion of his final basketball season at Sierra Canyon School, which ended in a CIF State Division 1 title in California last Saturday. His father watched the state title game from the sideline.
"On to the next chapter..." the University of Arizona commit captioned an Instagram post that included a slideshow of photos from Sierra Canyon.
The post stirred pride in the 40-year-old James, who shared it and added a powerful message on his Instagram story shortly after the Lakers-Bucks game went final.
"H.I.M. Young (King)," LeBron typed, with the final word taking the shape of an emoji.
Bryce's post was flooded with comments from fans watching Bronny make Lakers history against the Bucks. Several comments raised excitement about the possibility of another of James' sons making it to the NBA before LeBron retires.
The four-time NBA champion has a player option with Los Angeles for the 2025-2026 season. If he opts in and sees out the contract, he would become an unrestricted free agent in 2026-2027, after Bryce's first season at Arizona.
LeBron's choice to show support for Bryce did not prevent the NBA's all-time leading scorer from spreading the love on Bronny's career night. He was seen celebrating the rookie's efforts along with Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves on the bench during the game.
After the career-best performance, Bronny showed that he was just like his dad, sharing how he uses his experience to motivate Bryce in his own way.
"There's a lot of kids out there that want to be in my spot or his spot and you can't take that for granted," Bronny said when asked after the Lakers' loss about the advice he gives to his younger brother. "Just keep working, that's the main thing."
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This story was originally published March 21, 2025 at 4:41 AM.