Josh Duhamel Says Son Axl, 9, Is 'Finally' Enjoying Sports: 'It's Taken Him a Long Time'

Josh Duhamel and son Axl Jack

Josh Duhamel has a budding athlete on his hands.

Over the weekend, the Win a Date with Tad Hamilton! actor, 50, had 9-year-old son Axl, whom he shares with ex Fergie, in tow as he participated in the second annual charity flag football tournament hosted by RX3, the consumer growth equity firm co-founded by NFL quarterback Aaron Rodgers, at which more than $1.5 million was raised for charities including the Boys and Girls Club.

"Does my son play sports? He's starting to get into it finally. I didn't think he was ever going to get into it, but he really loves basketball now," Duhamel exclusively tells PEOPLE.

"He likes to throw the football around with me a little bit. I try not to be overbearing with him in sports, but I try to let him find it rather than me push it on him," he continues.

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RX3 Josh Duhamel

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"It's taken him a long time and it's actually been a little bit frustrating, 'cause I was thinking he was going to be like me, but he's getting there. He likes it."

Duhamel is hoping that Axl will get some great life lessons from exploring different sports, noting, "I just think sports are good for kids."

"Look, he's not going to be a pro athlete, but it's good for him to learn how to win, how to lose, how to be a teammate, how to work towards something. I think that sports are [full of] a lot of great lessons."

Following the actor's engagement to Audra Mari, whom he wed last fall, a source told PEOPLE at the time that the actor "wants more kids and always has so they probably will have kids sooner than later."

"He's not shy about it, but he's felt this way since Axl was very young," added the insider of Duhamel. "He loves being a father."

Last year, a source close to Mari told PEOPLE that the former Miss World America would "love to have kids with Josh" and was "getting to know" Axl.

"Josh spends a lot of time with his son," said the source at the time, adding that he is "very protective of Axl" and it "took a while before Audra met him."