The Griffeys in the house to see LeBron, Bronny make history
Bryan Horowitz
@SportsAngleWhen Ken Griffey Jr. shared a field with Ken Griffey Sr. on the Seattle Mariners in 1990, becoming the first father and son to play on the same team, it was historic. When Ken Jr. and Sr. hit back-to-back home runs on Sept. 14, it became that much more memorable.
Thirty-four years later, the Griffeys were fittingly in the house to watch another iconic father-and-son duo make a memory: They attended the Lakers¡¯ season opener on Tuesday against the Timberwolves, and got to see LeBron James and his son, Bronny, take the court together late in the second quarter of a regular-season game. They became the first father and son to play in an NBA game together, much less on the same team. (The pair already teamed up during a preseason game against the Suns on Oct. 6.)
Griffey Jr. and Sr. and LeBron and Bronny all met on the court ahead of the game for some photos.
¡°I¡¯m actually going to go to the game, I¡¯m going to take my dad,¡± Griffey Jr. told Jon Paul Morosi on the Road to Cooperstown podcast for MLB Network Radio earlier in the week. ¡°First father and son to play baseball, now the first father and son to play basketball, so 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.¡±
The Griffeys are well versed in this kind of historical feat. Junior was in his second year with the Mariners when the Reds released Ken Sr. on Aug. 24, paving the way for the Mariners to pick him up five days later. On Aug. 31, they became the first father and son to play in the same big league game. Batting second and third in the lineup against the Royals, Griffey Sr. and Griffey Jr. both hit singles in their respective first at-bats. Two weeks later, they took it to another level, hitting consecutive home runs against the Angels.
LeBron and Bronny similarly entered the record books when the Lakers took a double-digit lead against the Timberwolves shortly before the end of the first half at Crypto.com Arena on Tuesday. Father and son checked into the game together, with the Griffeys cheering them on.
Griffey Jr., for the record, has a longstanding friendship with King James that dates back to one day after LeBron was drafted by the Cavaliers in 2003. LeBron threw out the first pitch and took batting practice before a Cleveland-Cincinnati game that day, and the two former No. 1 overall picks hit it off. Later that winter, The King spent the holidays with The Kid.
¡°When LeBron became a pro, his first Christmas was at our house,¡± Griffey recalled a few years ago. ¡°He was in Orlando and Melissa and I cooked him Christmas dinner along with a couple of his teammates. It was pretty sweet to have a guy -- 18 years old, I remember those days, to be a phenom. He came over to the house and we had dinner and watched a game, and I¡¯ve been a big fan of his ever since.
"He¡¯s done some things with his school [for kids] and being an activist that are just phenomenal. Let alone being a great basketball player, he¡¯s just a great person.¡±
LeBron has paid tribute to Junior over the years as well, frequently citing him as his favorite baseball player of all time, waxing poetic about his sweet swing and releasing several Griffey-inspired models of his signature sneakers. Which makes it all the more fitting Junior and his dad were there on Tuesday, as LeBron and Bronny saw exactly what it¡¯s like to walk a mile in their shoes.
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