Bronny James scores first basket for Lakers in 134-110 defeat by Cavaliers
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Los Angeles Lakers guard Bronny James shooting over Cleveland Cavaliers forward Jaylon Tyson in the second half at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse on Oct 30.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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CLEVELAND – A homecoming for Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James and son Bronny turned into a party for hosts Cleveland Cavaliers on Oct 30.
The younger James scored his first NBA basket for Los Angeles, but Evan Mobley tallied 25 points and Donovan Mitchell added 24 points and seven assists as the Cavaliers improved to 5-0 with a 134-110 victory in a National Basketball Association game on Oct 30.
Bronny had not featured since he was subbed in to play alongside LeBron in the Lakers’ season-opening victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves, making them the first father-and-son duo to play alongside each other in the NBA.
This time around, LeBron went to the bench for good with 9min 13sec remaining as the Cavaliers led by a sizeable margin despite his game-high 26 points, six rebounds and six turnovers.
With victory in their grasp, the Cleveland crowd started chanting, “We Want Bronny” shortly after, craving for action from the rookie guard who was born in the city in 2004.
Entering the fray with 5:16 left, while the Lakers trailed 119-98, Bronny was given a standing ovation from the fans who remember him as a toddler attending Cavaliers’ games when LeBron starred for his hometown team.
He assisted on Dalton Knecht’s dunk before scoring his first NBA points on a step-back, 14-foot jumper over Tristan Thompson with 2:03 left.
But he missed a three-point attempt with under a minute to play.
“To see him get his first NBA basket in this arena where he grew up not too far away from here, it’s an unbelievable moment,” LeBron told Lakers Nation.
Commending his son’s composure, the elder James added: “Twenty thousand fans screaming my name to get in the game...
“If the role’s reversed, I don’t know if I would have been able to handle it.”
Bronny, 20, said: “It was a dream come true for me. It felt really good after the fact. I was still in game mode when I hit the shot, so I didn’t really acknowledge it while I was playing.”
While Lakers coach J.J. Redick congratulated Bronny, he also admitted that they got “punched in the mouth” by the Cavaliers.
“When you play good teams, you can’t afford a lot of mistakes. We made a lot of mistakes,” he added.
Cleveland’s sparkling form has left coach Kenny Atkinson surprised. The Boston Celtics’ 135-132 overtime loss to the Indiana Pacers has left his team as the only unbeaten side in the East.
He said: “Yeah. I have so much respect for the parity in this league. Yeah, honestly I’m a bit surprised.”
This is their best start since the 2016-17 season, when LeBron was wearing No. 23 for them.
LeBron had played 11 seasons over two spells for the Cavaliers, bringing the franchise its first championship in 2016.
Not surprisingly, the 39-year-old was cheered throughout pre-game warmups and during his traditional pre-game powder toss along the scorer’s table.
The four-time NBA champion thrilled the crowd at the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, with his dunk to make it 4-0 the biggest highlight of the first quarter for the Lakers, who succumbed to a barrage of three-pointers from the Cavaliers.
The hosts shot 17 of 22 from the floor in the first quarter and made eight of 13 treys as they led 42-23.
Keeping up the pace in the second quarter, the Cavaliers led 57-36 after a dunk by Jarrett Allen with 4:38 left and carried a 67-48 cushion into half-time. He finished with 20 points and 17 rebounds.
Mobley had eight points in the first two minutes of the fourth quarter, including a wide-open slam to boost the Cavs’ lead to 105-79. He ended with 17 points in the fourth.
Lakers star Anthony Davis, who entered the game leading the NBA in scoring at 32.8 points a game, finished with 22 points and 13 rebounds. REUTERS, AFP
