BY EMMANUEL OGBONNA
Hours before the spotlight shifted to tipoff, a quieter and more personal scene unfolded on the hardwood at the Chase Center.
With the arena still filling and music echoing through the rafters, 11-year-old Zhuri James stood at the free-throw line, her back to the basket. She launched an over-the-head attempt that arced high, kissed the glass and dropped through the net after several earlier misses. The make drew a smile from her father, LeBron James, who had just wrapped up his own meticulous pregame routine.
“I don’t know,” Zhuri said later when asked what changed on the successful attempt. “I tried to make sure I was in front of the basket.”
The brief shooting session became a family highlight before the Los Angeles Lakers’ 129-101 victory over the Golden State Warriors on Saturday night. While James fine-tuned his jumper and went through ball-handling drills, Zhuri mirrored him along the baseline, dribbling as he dribbled. At one point, he glanced over, caught sight of her determination and flashed a grin.
She then stepped onto the court for a handful of shots from different angles around the key, savoring a rare opportunity. Road arenas do not often provide the chance for extended family time on the floor, she noted. At Lakers home games, she said, it happens “sometimes but not a lot.”
The pregame ritual ended with a playful flourish. Zhuri lofted a soft alley-oop pass toward the rim. James elevated and finished with an emphatic dunk, bringing a roar from early-arriving fans. Father and daughter shared a handshake before he leaned in with a quick “love you” and headed toward the locker room.
Minutes later, the focus shifted entirely to competition.
At 41, James continues to defy conventional timelines for NBA longevity. He opened the game in rhythm, connecting on seven of his first 10 shots and knocking down all four of his attempts from beyond the arc in the first half. By halftime, he had added four assists and four rebounds, helping stake the Lakers to a commanding 65-47 lead.
The Warriors, playing without injured star Stephen Curry for a 10th consecutive game, struggled to match Los Angeles’ early efficiency. The Lakers’ ball movement generated clean perimeter looks, and James orchestrated the offense with poise, alternating between scoring bursts and timely passes to cutters and spot-up shooters.
He finished the night with 22 points, nine assists and seven rebounds, numbers that underscored his steady control of the game’s tempo. The Lakers extended their advantage in the second half, turning the contest into a comfortable road win.
Yet long after the final buzzer, the image likely to linger for many was not a three-pointer or a fast-break dunk, but the sight of a father pausing amid the demands of an NBA schedule to encourage his daughter’s backward free-throw experiment.
For Zhuri, it was a moment of fun on one of basketball’s biggest stages. For LeBron James, it was another reminder that even in his 22nd professional season, the game continues to offer space for family, connection and joy alongside competition.
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