LeBron James and Anthony Davis are to play at some stage during the Los Angeles Lakers‘ first two pre-season games this weekend, getting the two superstars back on the court well ahead of schedule after the busy Summer Olympics.
The new coach JJ Redick said James and Davis play in one or both games Thursday as the Lakers head to the Coachella Valley. Los Angeles will play Minnesota on Friday and Phoenix on Sunday in Palm Desert, California.
Days into the Lakers’ third training camp practice, Redick expressed discussions regarding playing time and rotations for the next weekend.
Thus, James could share playing time with his eldest son, Bronny James, and the Lakers’ second-round draft pick, all of them on the court at Acrisure Arena. Ironically, no father-and-son duo has ever played in the NBA simultaneously, let alone for the same team.
LeBron and Bronny are both eagerly awaiting that day. The Lakers can already glimpse at camp the natural competitiveness of the James family.
“It’s great to be here and see it play out,” Davis said Wednesday. “Bronny hit a 3 over LeBron, and everybody was talking smack in Bronny’s favor. Then Bron came down and just bullied somebody and got a layup. Even though they weren’t matched up, the competition is there, and that’s what we love to see.”
Bronny, who will turn 20 on Sunday, is set to get a lot of playing time in the pre-season before spending the regular season with the South Bay Lakers of the G League.
LeBron James and Davis were part of the U.S. team, that won gold at the Olympics in Paris. LeBron is heading back to the States after an extended summer vacation across Europe to prepare for his astonishing 22nd season in the NBA, which will put him on a par with Vince Carter as having the longest career in league history.
James was pretty preoccupied with the U.S. team and didn’t have much time to talk to Redick, his former podcasting partner, immediately after Redick got the job in late June. But James and Davis have spoken frequently with Redick this week about their plans and preparation for the upcoming season.
“It was just random texts here or there talking about it, but now I’m diving in,” James said Tuesday.
Davis seems to be in great health fall after playing in a career-high 76 games last season.
The Lakers are playing all their pre-season games on the road because their downtown arena will be undergoing renovations. They make their home debut against Minnesota in the regular season on Oct. 22.
