Bronny James Makes USC Debut 5 Months After Cardiac Arrest
Nearly five months after suffering cardiac arrest, Bronny James made his long-awaited debut for the USC on Sunday (Dec.10), the Associated Press reports.
The Trojans fell to Long Beach State 84-79 in an overtime thriller where James gave a glimpse of the skills that made him one of the top recruits in the nation.
Coming off the bench James posted a stat line of four points, three rebounds and two assists in 16 minutes with his father, LA Lakers superstar LeBron James watching intently from the front row along with other members of his family. He also made several defensive plays that wowed the sold-out crowd.
Andy Enfield, the head coach of USC spoke glowingly about James in his debut.
“I thought Bronny played well,” Enfield said. “He defended at a high level. He guarded the quick ballhandlers on the other team pretty well.”
Enfield noted that James’ minutes would continue to be monitored by USC’s medical staff as the season progressed.
Bronny’s teammates also expressed how impressed they were at his performance,
“It’s great to see Bronny out there. He’s put a lot of work in the gym,” said Vincent Iwuchukwu, who also suffered cardiac arrest as a freshman. “We talked before the game and I told him to go out there and have fun.”
“He makes the right play all the time,” said Boogie Ellis, one of USC’s top players. “Everybody wants a guy like that on their team. He defends well at a high level.”
In July, Bronny suffered a cardiac arrest during a basketball workout which was later revealed to have come from a heart defect. Stephanie Rosa of the LeBron James Family Foundation said that Bronny’s ailment was “an anatomically and functionally significant Congenital Heart Defect which can and will be treated,”
San Diego station KFMB reported in November that Bronny was cleared to return to full participation with the team.
"Bronny James is now cleared by his doctors for a full return to basketball," USC’s statement read. "Bronny will have a final evaluation with USC staff this week, resume practice next week, and return to games soon after."
After the Lakers won the NBA’s inaugural In-Season Tournament on Saturday (Dec.9) and he was named the MVP, LeBron shared his excitement about his team’s victory and more importantly, Bronny’s debut.
“It's going to be a hell of a weekend for me. To be able to win the In-Season Tournament, pick up a little dough on the way, and then go see my son tomorrow at the Galen Center," LeBron James said during a post-game interview.
