LeBron James has disclosed that playing alongside his 20-year-old son, Bronny James, in the NBA is his greatest achievement. Speaking on the New Heights podcast with Jason and Travis Kelce on January 15, the 40-year-old Lakers star reflected on their historic milestone as the first father-son duo to play together in the NBA, achieved in October 2024.
“When it comes to the titles, that’s one separate thing,” LeBron said. “But to be able to play in this league and also being able to do it alongside Bronny right now, that’s one of the biggest accomplishments and probably the No. 1 accomplishment I’ve ever been able to do.”
He added, “To work with your son — I’ve heard it from a lot of people and, not only [in] sports, but I’ve heard it in business and [other] walks of life, and they say it’s the greatest thing you could ever have.”
LeBron, who shares sons Bronny, 20, and Bryce, 17, and daughter Zhuri, 10, with his wife Savannah, noted that playing alongside Bronny in the NBA has helped him make up for the time he spent away from his family during Bronny’s childhood due to his career, as reported by PEOPLE.
“To see him every day, grinding and going through the process of trying to become who he wants to become while I’m sitting there and just watching him, and doing the things that he wants to do and being able to just take it all in … it helps me get some of the minutes and hours and years back that I did not have with him because I was playing so much and on the road and doing my own thing, and traveling,” LeBron continued.
He added, “So to be able to get some of his time back now, man, it’s pretty special.”
“I didn’t have to deal with the social-media trolls either, growing up,” he said. “And I didn’t have to deal with my father being this f—ing guy that’s on a pedestal.”
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The father of three acknowledged that his son Bronny faced intense pressure and criticism on social media—challenges LeBron himself didn’t experience during his early career.
LeBron went on to say that if naysayers were to meet Bronny, they would feel like “such an idiot” due to him being “the most chill, easy, fun kid in the world.”
“I think it’s gonna make him to be even greater, because having to deal with all of the things that he’s dealing with and still being able to come back from a life-threatening situation and still have the motivation,” LeBron added. “He didn’t have to.”
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In July 2023, Bronny suffered a cardiac arrest during a basketball workout at the University of Southern California.
“Bronny doesn’t have to play basketball at all,” LeBron said, adding that his son doesn’t need the money and could decide to “do whatever he wants to do.”
“But he’s like, ‘This is my career. This is my goals and this is my aspirations, and I wanna play ball. This is something that I love,’ ” he added. “I love that kid. He’s awesome.”
