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Bronny, LeBron James have another special homecoming in Cavs vs Lakers
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- Bronny, LeBron James have another special homecoming in Cavs vs Lakers
CLEVELAND — Before LeBron James left Rocket Arena for perhaps the final time as a player on Jan. 28, he met with his mother, Gloria James , and several friends of their family, autographing No. 23 Los Angeles Lakers jerseys and posing for photographs outside the visiting team's locker room.
After the Cavaliers defeated James and the Lakers 129-99 , the Akron native conceded he thought it could be his last game in Cleveland, where he won an NBA championship with the Cavs in 2016. But James also explained his mom was on his mind. More specifically, James reflected on his mother watching him and his oldest son, second-year Lakers guard Bronny James , play on an emotional night.
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With the Cavaliers (29-20) routing the Lakers (28-18) in the fourth quarter, the Cleveland crowd broke out two separate "we want Bronny " chants as Cavs guard Donovan Mitchell stepped to the free-throw line with 9:15 and 8:23 remaining.
LeBron James news: Akron native emotional in what 'very well could be' his last game in Cleveland
Lakers coach JJ Redick gave the people what they wanted by bringing Bronny James off the bench with 8:23 left. He threw down a fast-break dunk with 3:32 remaining and drained 3-pointers with 2:53 and 1:42 left, drawing thunderous ovations from the Cleveland fans. He finished with eight points on 3-of-3 shooting from the field. His dad scored 11 points on 3-of-10 shooting from the floor (0 of 3 on 3s) in 27 minutes.
"It was pretty cool just sitting over there and watching him just continue to live out his dream," LeBron James said. "Obviously, it's a homecoming for him, and to see him get that fast-break dunk, hit a couple shots, get the ovation from the fans, pretty cool moment for him, for us as a family, for my wife and his siblings.
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"My mom is here watching her son and her grandson. I don't even know how to even wrap that all in one in my brain. So weird. And so cool. And so surreal. My mom gets to watch her son and her grandson play in the NBA at the same time — s---. Just started to think about how insane that is. That's awesome."
A second-round pick in the 2024 draft, Bronny James also played in Cleveland last season as a rookie and made his first basket in a regular-season NBA game .
Here are other sights, sounds, notes and quotes from the latest reunion between the Cavs and LeBron James:
LeBron James teases reunion with former Cavs teammates for 10-year anniversary of 2016 championship
The 41-year-old James received loud ovations during Lakers pregame player introductions and his famous chalk toss.
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The Cavaliers welcomed him back with a tribute video on their scoreboards in the first quarter, evoking an emotional response from the greatest player in franchise history.
The Cavs also donned their "classic edition" uniforms, a nod to the deep navy blue, wine and gold uniform the team wore during James' first stint in Cleveland from 2003-10.
Cavs news: Cavaliers dominate their LeBron James reunion
A member of the 2016 championship team, Richard Jefferson executed the Cavs' honorary sword pull prior to tip-off.
"While R.J. was pulling the knife out," James said, referencing the ceremonial sword, "I looked at some of our assistant coaches on the bench, and I was like, 'It is kind of crazy that I'm watching my teammate that I won a championship [with] 10 years ago, and now he's an analyst [for ESPN], and I'm still playing.' It is super, super crazy to think about.
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"But a lot of us [from the 2016 championship team] are still on a group chat — myself, Channing [Frye], R.J., Tristan [Thompson], [Kevin] Love — and we've got some plans for our 10-year reunion that will be finalized after the season, the Cavs season, my season, and it'd be good to see those guys again."
The 10-year anniversary of the Cavs capturing the 2016 title by prevailing in Game 7 at the Golden State Warriors will be on June 19.
Why is LeBron James still playing in the NBA at age 41?
James has won four NBA championships, two with the Miami Heat (2012 and 2013), one with the Cavs (2016) and one with the Lakers (2020).
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Why is the 2003 St. Vincent-St. Mary High School graduate playing a 23rd NBA season — something no one else has ever done?
"My why has been that I'm still playing this game at a high level, and I still love the process, the process of putting in the work, inspiring, giving what I've got to the game because I'll have more years in my life without it than with it to be able to inspire," James said. "... Obviously, the question gets asked more and the thought creeps in my mind more at 41 years old of when the end is and where's the finish line for us to hang this thing up.
"But the drive on how much juice I can squeeze out of this orange and how can I continue to [perform is motivation]. I'm in a battle with Father Time, and I'm kind of taking it personal. And [I'll] see how many more times I could be victorious over him, but I won't be one of those guys that won't be able to walk off the court. That's for sure."
Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell (45) defends Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) on Jan, 28, 2026, in Cleveland.
LeBron James and Luka Doncic experience ankle injury scares. Lakers coach JJ Redick flags Cavs' court as 'safety hazard'
Speaking of maintaining an ability to walk off the court, as James landed on a jump shot, his left foot stepped on Cavs guard Lonzo Ball 's left foot. James fell to the ground in obvious discomfort with 11:16 left in the fourth quarter, but he remained in the game after a timeout.
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Lakers guard Luka Doncic also experienced an injury scare. During a timeout with 7:46 left in the opening quarter, Doncic limped toward the Lakers' locker room. After taking a 3-pointer near LA's bench, he fell where the elevated court at Rocket Arena drops down and front-row seats are placed. He immediately grabbed his left ankle.
Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic dribbles the ball against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Jan. 28, 2026, in Cleveland.
Doncic returned to the action with 1:32 left in the first quarter and finished with a game-high 29 points in 30 minutes. Mitchell led the Cavs with 25 points in 29 minutes.
Doncic said the "first thing" he thought about when he hurt his ankle was Miami Heat guard Dru Smith suffering a season-ending knee injury when he slipped off the Cavs' raised floor in 2023.
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"There's been a number of injuries over the years in this building because of the floor," Redick said. "... It is absolutely a safety hazard, and I don't know why it's still like that. I don't. And you can lodge formal complaints. A lot of times you don't see any change when you lodge a formal complaint."
Cavs wing Jaylon Tyson takes fearless approach to defensive assignment vs. LeBron James and postgame interview with ESPN
Cavs wing Jaylon Tyson said he grew up cheering for Cleveland because of James. In Tyson's second NBA season , he found himself guarding James.
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"Everybody knows who that is, right? The greatest ever," Tyson said. "But I look at it as another opportunity. Obviously, when I was given that matchup, it's like, all right, like I said, I don't fear nobody. I just go out there and just be who I am and try to make his job as difficult as possible."
Tyson finished with 20 points, six rebounds and six assists in 29 minutes.
After the game, Tyson pumped up Mitchell amid Cleveland's love for James, declaring during an on-court interview with ESPN, "This is Donovan Mitchell's city now."
Nate Ulrich is the sports columnist of the Akron Beacon Journal and a sports features writer. Nate can be reached at nulrich@thebeaconjournal.com . On Twitter: @ByNateUlrich .
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Bronny and LeBron James have special experience as Cavs beat Lakers
