LeBron James Jr. came *this close* to throwing down his first in-game dunk, and Dad couldn't believe it

Dan Devine
·Senior NBA writer
LeBron James Jr. (left) poses with his dad LeBron James, his sister Zhuri James, and his brother Bryce Maximus James after the 2018 NBA All-Star Game at Staples Center in Los Angeles. (Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images)
LeBron James Jr. (left) poses with his dad LeBron James, his sister Zhuri James, and his brother Bryce Maximus James after the 2018 NBA All-Star Game at Staples Center in Los Angeles. (Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images)

College coaches have been talking about the possibility of recruiting LeBron James Jr. since before he turned 10; when you’re the son of one of the greatest basketball players ever, attention and heightened expectations come with the territory. The scrutiny has only intensified as James Jr. — “Bronny,” to his dad — has grown and progressed as a prep prospect with scholarship offers from Duke and Kentucky reportedly already in his back pocket.

James Jr., now 13, led his middle school team to a championship back in February, opened eyes at a youth all-star tournament the following month and, as his old man says, has “got a chance” to one day make it all the way to the NBA (perhaps, if Senior can hold on, as part of a father-and-son act). With that name and that game, he’s a young player on the rise … and during a game at the “Ballin’ on the Beach” tournament in Miami on Sunday, he rose in a way that made dear old dad stand up and take notice:

After snagging a steal and getting out on the break, Bronny took off and tried a right-handed tomahawk — a real chip off the old block — which was reportedly the first time he’s tried to throw down a dunk in live game action. My source for that morsel? LeBron Raymone James:

Man what!?!?! First time he ever tried that in a game today! And it was someone kinda trailing him behind too! Surprised not only me but everyone in the gym. Man o Man! #JamesGang👑. #repost @slamonline

A post shared by LeBron James (@kingjames) on Jun 24, 2018 at 3:55pm PDT

The attempt came late in a victory for James Jr.’s North Coast Blue Chips squad, according to Cameron Smith of USA TODAY Sports. Considering we’re only a few weeks removed from Bronny coming up just shy in warmups, it seems like a decent bet that he’ll be cocking the hammer against real defenders in no time … and that he’ll be delivering plenty more highlight reel material before it’s time for him to sit down with Mom and Dad to decide which one of those scholarship offers he’ll be taking.

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Dan Devine is a writer and editor for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at devine@yahoosports.com or follow him on Twitter!

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