History or hype? LeBron and Brony James shared the spotlight in the symbolic, yet complicated Lakers win

LOS ANGELES – It was three minutes in all.

Three minutes of history, a father and son closing their warm-up with camera phones and flashbulbs popping.

Getting a three-minute show on the way to a game, a moment to get in the way of a win.

Seminal moment or clown show? It all depends on the eye of the beholder as LeBron James and Brony James take the floor at the same time late in the second quarter of the Lakers' season opener against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

“I talked about it, years and years ago, and for this moment to come, it was pretty cool,” LeBron James said. “At this point, we still had a job when we checked in. We weren't trying to make it a circus, we weren't trying to make it about us. We wanted to make it about the game.

“We kept the main thing the main thing.”

The circus always seems to follow LeBron James and it doesn't seem to be stopping anytime soon. This is the first time, as Anthony Davis noted, that a milestone moment has occurred in a Lakers win. There were so many celebrations in the wake of the loss, and before the night began, it certainly seemed like Tuesday would follow a similar track.

But the Timberwolves seemed bored and disjointed for most of the night, showing only glimpses of the team that made a surprising run to the Western Conference finals a few months ago.

It helped the Lakers to a 110-103 victory, and the victory was soothing considering the criticism that came their way when those three minutes were costly.

“On a dead ball I was wondering why everybody started cheering so loudly and then I realized what was going on,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said. “I was like, 'That's great.' This presented an opportunity for Brony. He played well, competed through the preseason just to give him a chance to go into a regular-season game.”

The hype leading up to the game has obscured other prevailing storylines that will take center stage over the next few months. Redick's frizzy hair was washed out after his first win as a head coach, and Davis led the way, dominating Rudy Gobert with 36 points, 16 rebounds, four assists and three blocks in 37 minutes.

If Davis is truly going to be the focal point, a statement we've heard a few times before, this is the start. He gestured to the crowd multiple times, seemingly indicating that Gobert was no match for him, and Davis stopped all aerial movement near the rim with his presence.

“Just carrying over from the Olympics,” Davis said, referring to his gold medal win with the U.S. men's national basketball team in Paris. “I mean, I had a summer where I got to play basketball. High intensity play with some great competition, with some great players who made me better. Getting ready to go to camp … it translated to regular-season games.”

It helped make the moment unimportant in the bigger picture, but it's a moment the elder James won't forget. A moment the younger James probably couldn't have imagined a year ago when he suffered cardiac arrest while playing at USC not far from Crypto.com Arena.

On the floor, not much happened. Broney scored off Julius Randle and missed a 3-pointer off a pass from his father. For those hoping for Ken Griffey's father-son moment, back-to-back home runs, delivered in Disney-like fashion in 1990, it was a dream that wouldn't come true.

“I try not to focus on what's going on around me,” says Bronnie James. “Coming in as a rookie and trying not to mess up. I feel completely energized and appreciate Laker Nation for showing me support.”

The baseball duo was in attendance, taking in the moment and posing for photos with the James clan before the game began. It was clear that the Lakers wanted it to be a spectacle and finish it off to take away the pressure and anticipation for everyone involved. The Lakers hold on to tradition, clinging to it like a warm blanket on a windy night while the rest of the NBA goes about its business.

A minute after Brony James checked out, Lakers great Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was being wheeled back in a wheelchair. Once the 77-year-old was recognized by a crowd of fans near the tunnel, they ignored the game for about 15 seconds and cheered “Kareem” in appreciation.

And moments after the Lakers' longtime PA announcer Lawrence Tanter mentioned the history-making James to the crowd, he also announced a halftime show commemorating the life of the late Jerry West — another illustration of the connective tissue that runs through the franchise.

Now, it's worth noting that West didn't have the greatest relationship with the Lakers in his later years, most recently serving as an advisor to the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Clippers before his death in June — his grievances aren't exactly a secret within reasonable earshot of the Lakers or the Clippers. someone

Their second-most important figure — behind Magic Johnson — felt alienated by the franchise he helped build and mold on the floor, and as for James, they didn't want to take a chance on upsetting him when they knew what he wanted.

Which is why this time around, the clutch-grabbing can be left to Brony James. Playing three minutes is no insult to him. The insult came in picking him, even at 55th, when it seemed clear he wasn't ready. The big one came when he signed a four-year guaranteed contract when it was clear he wasn't ready to contribute as a bona fide NBA player.

If you strip away the pompous details surrounding nepotism and entitlement, you can see how soothing it was for Brony to have LeBron James there.

LeBron went through nerves on the eve and day of the first game of that nationally televised event in Sacramento nearly 21 years ago. He admitted he couldn't sleep the night before and couldn't go through with his customary pregame nap.

“I was extremely nervous. I felt the world, playing basketball on my shoulders,” James said. “I felt that everyone outside my family and friends wanted me to fail. I just gave into it. I was nervous, my stomach was turning.”

But you can't take these issues away, even Bronny looked very unexpected and a bit unsettled sitting next to her father during their joint press conference. Whatever Brony is, if he becomes something on the court these four years because he's given the opportunity, LeBron will somehow be able to relate even through the struggles.

But Bronny was cheered, and even if there were people who were more likely to fail him, it was impossible for the world to tell against him.

Father and son came as a package deal, and probably finished the glasses. But if you turned your nose up at it for obvious reasons, James' influence still extended to the 7-footer who dominated the night — because the Lakers wouldn't have Anthony Davis without LeBron.

As always, it's never cut and dry with LeBron James — it was three minutes of gray.