Griffey father and son excited to witness LeBron and Bronny debut at Lakers' opener

The first father-son duo to grace the Major League Baseball field together is set to attend the Lakers’ season opener at their downtown arena. The crowd will be abuzz with anticipation, hopeful that the James family can achieve the same rare, historic milestone in NBA history.

“First father and son to play baseball, (and) now the first father and son to play basketball,” the younger Griffey told 

MLB Network Radio

. “It’s a big deal for my dad and I to be there. We made history. Now we get to watch history, so that’s what’s going to be cool about it.”

Bronny James is already excited to make his official NBA debut, but the Griffeys’ presence adds an extra layer of anticipation for the Lakers’ second-round pick.

“Yeah, it’s gonna be insane,” the 20-year-old Bronny said after practice Monday at the Lakers’ training complex. “I mean, only two families to do it, so it’s going to be a crazy experience, especially (with) what they’ve done.”

Bronny made it clear that he doesn’t know if he’ll actually get to play against the Minnesota Timberwolves, and Lakers coach JJ Redick said “nothing has been finalized or anything” about Los Angeles’ playing rotation.

Yet it seems unlikely the Lakers will wait to make 

the moment of history they’ve been planning

 ever since the franchise 

chose Bronny with the 55th overall pick

 this summer to play with LeBron, the 39-year-old top scorer in NBA history. The father and son already 

played together in the preseason

, first taking the court together outside Palm Springs earlier this month.

A father and son play together roughly once in a generation in North American professional sports. The Griffeys accomplished the feat in 1990 and 1991, playing in 51 games for the Seattle Mariners — and even homering in the same game on Sept. 14, 1990.

Tim Raines and his namesake son also played four games together for the Baltimore Orioles at the end of the 2001 season. Before that, Gordie Howe suited up with his sons Mark and Marty in the WHA and the NHL and for Team Canada in the 1970s.

Bronny grew up in his father’s locker rooms and arenas in Cleveland, Miami and Los Angeles, so he’s more than ready to get beyond the historic moment and into the day-to-day grind of becoming a contributing NBA player. The Lakers begin the season with three home games in five days.

“I think it will be different,” Bronny said of the opener. “No different than me getting ready for any other game, but just a feeling of being in our home arena for the first time and playing a game will be a special experience. … I’m just trying to come in and get better every day, learn from the guys that have been here before me. Just take it all in and enjoy the experience.”

Bronny played in all six of the Lakers’ preseason games, but his 4.2 points per game average was boosted greatly by his 17-point performance in last week’s preseason finale in which the Lakers and Warriors both rested most of their key players.

Bronny hit 29.7% of his shots in the preseason while averaging 1.7 rebounds and 0.3 assists, playing 16.2 minutes per game. His defensive work was praised by Redick, who sees the 6-foot-2 guard becoming a solid perimeter player in the future.

“Had some bad games, some rough starts, so (I’ve been) just continuing to play my game and play hard,” Bronny said.

Bronny isn’t expected to be an immediate rotation player for the Lakers, who already have D’Angelo Russell, Gabe Vincent and 2023 first-round pick Jalen Hood-Schifino ahead of him at point guard. There’s a good chance Bronny will begin the season with the Lakers before heading to the G League to get the consistent playing time he probably needs to improve.

But he’s still thrilled to reach this milestone moment — and he’s even pretty sure what he’ll call his father on the court after LeBron prohibited him from using “Dad.”

“Probably Bron,” Bronny said with a smile. “That will probably be the easiest one.”