For the past three consecutive games in their first-round series against the Houston Rockets, Bronny James has been allocated minutes at the beginning of the second quarter for the Los Angeles Lakers.
He certainly made those minutes count in Game 3, with some significant help from his father.
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LeBron James’s elder son notched his inaugural career playoff points through a pull-up three-pointer and a fast-break layup on successive plays. His father provided crucial support for both scores: LeBron created space by boxing out Jae’Sean Tate for the three-pointer and then delivered the assist for the layup.
Here’s the complete sequence of events:
Having already made history as the NBA’s and the playoffs’ first father-son duo to play together, the Jameses have now set another record by being the first pair to connect on an assist in the postseason, a milestone enthusiastically highlighted by the league’s social media.
Bronny departed the game halfway through the second quarter, having tallied five points on perfect 2-of-2 shooting. He later saw some action in the fourth quarter but didn’t add to his statistics. His father, on the other hand, played a pivotal role in securing a comeback victory in overtime.
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Prior to Friday’s game, Bronny’s playoff appearances had amounted to zero points from three attempts across 11 minutes spanning four contests.
The 21-year-old guard appears to be capitalizing on the Lakers’ current injury woes, with the absences of Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves creating significant opportunities for minutes further down the depth chart.
This season, Bronny participated in 42 NBA games, averaging 8.9 minutes per contest, and also excelled in 14 G League appearances, where he averaged 15.6 points and 3.7 assists. Before the series commenced, his father maintained that he was prepared for playoff minutes, and Bronny seems to be relishing the experience thus far.