The Lions knocked off the Seahawks in their Week 4 ‘Monday Night Football’ matchup, largely on the back – really, the arm – of Jared Goff. The Detroit quarterback finished the game a perfect 18-for-18 passing for 292 yards and two touchdowns. Oh, he also snagged a receiving TD in the contest.

One would think that such a performance would certainly earn Goff the ceremonial game ball, right? Well, Lions head coach Dan Campbell was unaware of Goff’s 18-for-18 night, making way for a pretty big oopsie in the Lions’ locker room postgame.

‘I just gave the game ball to somebody else,’ Campbell said after the win. ‘So, I feel awful right now.

‘I knew he played a heck of a game – I did not realize he was perfect. I did not know he was literally 18 for 18.’ 

NFL STATS CENTRAL: The latest NFL scores, schedules, odds, stats and more.

Campbell had a laugh about it, but also went the extra mile to praise his quarterback despite not knowing that Goff finished with a perfect performance.

The Lions were in the process of making minced meat of the Seahawks by halftime, but a competitive, back-and-forth third quarter saw the game head down to the wire. Ultimately, a clutch Goff toss to Amon-Ra St. Brown put the Lions ahead for good.

The question remains: If not Goff, then who? Well, the game ball went to Detroit safety Kerby Joseph and wideout Jameson Williams. Joseph nabbed the game-sealing interception, while Williams grabbed two passes for 80 yards, one of which was a 70-yard catch-and-run to the end zone for a TD.

Those Lions are worthy recipients, certainly: But the biggest – and only – incompletion of the Lions’ night was Campbell not tossing that game ball to Goff.

That is because Rose was banned from MLB for life in August 1989 for gambling on baseball.

A league investigation concluded Rose, who died Monday at 83, not only gambled on MLB games but wagered on games involving the Cincinnati Reds when he was managing the team.

“One of the game’s greatest players has engaged in a variety of acts which have stained the game, and he must now live with the consequences of those acts,’’ A. Bartlett Giamatti, MLB’s commissioner in 1989, said of the decision to ban Rose.

Rose signed an agreement with Giamatti declaring him permanently ineligible for baseball but allowing him to petition for reinstatement and avoid a formal declaration that he bet on baseball. Multiple efforts at reinstatement failed.

Follow every MLB game: Latest MLB scores, stats, schedules and standings.

The Dowd Report, the result of MLB’s investigation into Rose’s activity, included alleged betting records, bank and telephone records and other evidence. The evidence suggested Rose gambled on baseball and, in particular, on games involving the Reds in 1985, 1986 and 1987.

For 15 years, Rose denied he gambled on baseball. The denials ended in 2004 with the publication of his autobiography, “My Prison Without Bars.’’

Though Rose insisted he never bet against the Reds, he wrote that he gambled on baseball four to five times a week, something he had later admitted to then-Commissioner Bud Selig.

”My actions, which I thought were benign, call the integrity of the game into question,’’ Rose wrote. “And there’s no excuse for that, but there’s also no reason to punish me forever.”

What did Pete Rose say about gambling when he was banned?

The day Rose was banned from baseball, his feet were not quite out the door. He held a news conference at Cincinnati’s Riverfront Stadium.

“My life is baseball,’’ he said. “I hope to get back into baseball as soon as I possibly can.’’

He said, “obviously made some mistakes … but one of the mistakes wasn’t betting on baseball.’’

He already was focused on the Hall of Fame, something for which he yearned for many years. His 4,256 hits are a record that will likely never be broken.

“I did my part to get into the Hall of Fame …. I got all the hits and scored all the runs and won all the games,’’ he said. “I can’t really worry about something that’s not in my control.’

As late as 2023, Rose talked about the possibility of MLB and its commissioner, Rob Manfred, reinstating him.

“I’m the one that screwed up and if (Manfred and MLB) ever decide to give me a second chance, I’d be with open arms understanding,” Rose told Forbes. “Baseball has made up their mind on me. I could tell them I’m going to die tomorrow and they wouldn’t change their mind.

“I’ve been suspended over 30 years. That’s a long time to be suspended for betting on your own team to win. And I was wrong. But that mistake was made. Time usually heals everything. It seems like it does in baseball, except when you talk about the Pete Rose case.”

Manfred could not be persuaded.

In 2023, Manfred told the Baseball Writers’ Association of America, ‘We’ve always approached the issue of gambling from the proposition that players and other people who are in a position to influence the outcome of the game are going to be subject to a different set of rules than everyone else in the world.

‘Pete Rose violated what is sort of rule one in baseball, and the consequences of that are clear in the rule, and we’ve continued to abide by our own rules. It’s just the rules are different for players. It’s part of the responsibility that comes with the privilege of being a major league player.’

What did Pete Rose do after he was banned for gambling?

As recently as last month, Rose stood in front of his legendary headfirst slide statue in Cincinnati, where he was born. It’s where he became a baseball legend, but was not his home once he retired.

Las Vegas is where Rose spent most of his life after baseball.

Though he never was reinstated, Rose continued to be celebrated and marketable. Rose regularly autographed baseballs and other memorabilia, and in 2022 he sold personalized videos. The caption of a recent photo posted on X shows Rose at a card show with former Reds teammates Dave Concepción, George Foster, Tony Perez and Ken Griffey Sr.

It appears at least part of the proceeds were gambled.

In 2018, Pete Rose’s estranged wife alleged Rose remained a ‘high-stake gambler’ and had repeatedly failed to pay support on time, according to documents reviewed by USA TODAY Sports. 

Rose’s second wife, Carol, made the allegations in a filing in Los Angeles Superior Court as part of a divorce case that began in 2011.

Carol Rose also alleged the banned baseball star continued to wager large sums of money and owed large sums of money to casinos and the Internal Revenue Service.

A new HBO docuseries prompted Rose to reflect on the cost of it all.

“You have to understand one thing, ladies and gentlemen,” Rose said at a Q&A after the premiere of episode one of “Charlie Hustle & The Matter of Pete Rose, according to Deadline. “Gambling cost me a hundred million [dollars]. That’s what I’d have made in baseball if I hadn’t got suspended.”

His world extended beyond Las Vegas.

A post on Rose’s X account on Sept. 21 celebrated one of his own: “Couldn’t be more proud of my grandson.’’ Peter Edward Rose III “a.k.a. PJ Rose’’ had committed to play baseball for La Salle in Philadelphia.

“The #Rose legacy,’’ wrote Peter Edward Rose Sr.

Follow Josh Peter on social media @joshlpeter11

(This story was updated to add new information and a video.)

The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast. Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Mike McDaniel looked like a deer in headlights whenever the cameras found the third-year Miami Dolphins coach.

As starting quarterback Tua Tagovailoa paced up and down the sideline, out for his second straight game on injured reserve due to his Week 2 concussion, the Dolphins were reserved to playing their third backup quarterback in two weeks.

It didn’t matter how much McDaniel stared at his play call sheet, he didn’t have an answer offensively. To make matters worse for him, the Titans were stacked up against similar odds.

But Tennessee’s first-year coach Brian Callahan and backup quarterback Mason Rudolph didn’t flinch when starter Will Levis suffered a right shoulder injury diving for a first down in the first quarter.

It was Titans 31, Dolphins 12 in the ‘Monday Night Football’ game you probably didn’t watch because there was a better one to watch or live stream.

NFL STATS CENTRAL: The latest NFL scores, schedules, odds, stats and more.

“Ultimately, there’s nothing good about this situation right now in terms of where our team needs to be,” McDaniel said after falling to 1-3. “We need to do enough to win a football game against any opponent, and right now, that’s not the case. We have to fix that fast.”

McDaniel and the Dolphins entered the season following two straight playoff losses, hoping to take the next step together. They thought they had a Super Bowl window. But the reality is that window was slammed shut when these teams met on ‘Monday Night Football’ in Week 14 last season.

Tennessee scored two touchdowns in the final 2:40 to beat Miami last year – in a game that ruined the Dolphins’ chances to win the AFC East and left them subjected to a playoff loss in frigid Kansas City.

This year’s contest just confirmed how far away the Dolphins are from a year ago – when they scored 70 points against the Denver Broncos in Week 3 – and how far away they are from playoff aspirations for the third straight year.

The Dolphins failed to score a touchdown in 10 quarters and 30 straight possessions – their last in the first quarter of a 31-10 loss to the Bills in Week 2 – before starting quarterback Tyler Huntley scored a 1-yard touchdown run with 3:36 left.

Tagovailoa is on the shelf until Week 8, and there’s no telling how deep the Dolphins’ season might dive until his return.

“Playmakers got to be playmakers. We have to be better than good when you’re starting quarterback is out,” Dolphins receiver Jaylen Waddle said. “We have to be extra open to clear it up for the quarterback. He’s new here. We just have go out and make plays for him.”

It’s not like Huntley, who joined the team two weeks ago, didn’t try to just throw it deep to star receiver Tyreek Hill. But he didn’t throw it far enough the first time, and threw it just a bit far the second time. That was it.

Huntley was 14 of 92 with 96 yards passing, and the Dolphins’ leading rusher with 40 yards, starting ahead of injured backup Skyler Thompson and another newcomer Tim Boyle.

Hill had four catches for 23 yards receiving, and a fumble lost on the first drive of the game. Starting running back De’Von Achane had 18 total yards, and Waddle had 36 yards on four catches. Kicker Jason Sanders scored two field goals.

They Dolphins had 40 plays result in 84 net yards with 10:45 left in the game, and finished the game with 169 yards total after their fourth quarter score. “We felt like we could get those guys the ball in premium situations. We weren’t able to. That’s not up to my standard – at all,” McDaniel said. “We have to figure out how to score points, and those guys can help us do that for sure.”

There wasn’t much creativity from McDaniel either, unlike Callahan’s game-shifting call which resulted in a touchdown.

Titans backup running back Tyjae Spears lined up in shotgun formation. There was a fake handoff to starting tailback Tony Pollard. And, then a juke and 7-yard run by Spears into the end zone with six minutes left in the third quarter.

Pollard scored a 3-yard touchdown with 24 seconds left to cap the Titans’ night, which saw kicker Nick Folk connect on five field goals, including three of more than 50 yards. Callahan and the Titans improve to 2-2 after responding to adversity with a Week 5 bye to address Levis’ shoulder injury.

Meanwhile, McDaniel and the Dolphins are left looking for answers amidst a freefall just one month into the 2024 season. They visit the New England Patriots, another team with a first-year coach and backup quarterback, on Sunday.

“I know the message is everybody needs to stick together. That’s the biggest thing,” Dolphins starting safety Jevon Holland said.

All the NFL news on and off the field. Sign up for USA TODAY’s 4th and Monday newsletter.

(This story was updated to add new information.)

For the past three seasons, two teams have dominated the WNBA and have been at the top of title favorites: the Las Vegas Aces and New York Liberty.

Stacked with stars that know how to win, Las Vegas and New York are the ultimate title contenders and they have the résumés to prove it. The Aces are back-to-back defending champions, including last year’s championship over the Liberty. But on the other side of the country, New York has remained a strong force and had the best record in the league this season.

The two squads are meeting again, this time with a trip to the 2024 WNBA Finals on the line. The winner will likely be the favorite in the final round, but a title can’t be assumed. On the other side of the bracket are teams trying to slay the dragon, and there are several more hoping to keep the two heavyweights out of the title picture next season.

So who could be the next team to dethrone the giants of the WNBA?

Minnesota Lynx

One of the remaining semifinalists, Minnesota presents one of the best chances to win a title simply because it’s beaten New York and Las Vegas this season. The Lynx went 2-1 against the Liberty − including the Commissioner’s Cup victory − and 3-1 against the Aces.

It got overshadowed by A’ja Wilson winning MVP, but Napheesa Collier finished second in voting and she has shown how much of a star she is, on offense and defense. So far in the playoffs, Collier has gone off and it doesn’t look like there’s an answer to stop her. Kayla McBride continues to get better and the addition of Alanna Smith not only helped the defense be one of the best in the league, but be hard to stop beyond the arc. Minnesota has the best 3-point shooting percentage in the WNBA while opponents have the worst 3-point conversion rate.

The Lynx haven’t gotten to the WNBA Finals since they last won it in 2017. Head coach Cheryl Reeve continues to show why she’s one of the most brilliant minds in basketball, and her team is very capable of making her the first coach to win five WNBA titles.

Connecticut Sun

Good luck to any offense trying to get through this defense. Before it made Caitlin Clark’s WNBA debut one to forget, Connecticut has put the clamps on nearly every team that’s stood in its path. Only twice did a team score at least 90 points against the Sun this season, and in both cases, Connecticut still won.

Alyssa Thomas, DeWanna Bonner, DiJonai Carrington and Brionna Jones are a tough core that’s played together for years, but no in-season acquisition has been as big as Marina Mabrey. The former Chicago Sky guard has given Connecticut a 3-point shooting threat that is in the top 20 of 3-point shooting percentage. She shot 42.4% from behind the arc during the regular season after arriving to Connecticut during the Olympic break in July.

The Sun have cooled off from their blazing regular-season start when they opened 13-1, but they still present a challenge to any offense that goes up against them. They’ve fallen short so many times recently, including two WNBA Finals losses in 2019 and 2022. Now with a complete team, Connecticut has its best chance to win that elusive first title in franchise history.

Seattle Storm

Leading the teams that aren’t still standing in the 2024 playoffs are the Seattle Storm.

Seattle made the biggest jump in 2024, going from 11 wins and ninth place in 2023 to 25 wins and the fifth seed this season. The offseason acquisitions of Skylar Diggins-Smith and Nneka Ogwumike paid off, helping take the pressure off of Jewell Loyd. The Storm beat the teams they should’ve beaten; the issue was 10 of their 15 losses came against the teams that finished above them, clearly showing they weren’t at the top of the league just yet.

However, Seattle got a major addition when 2024 Paris Olympic star Gabby Williams returned to the team and immediately made an impact. Now, the Storm will need to re-sign Ogwumike and Williams if they want to keep the core of success around. If Seattle can build on that foundation of 2024 with a squad that is together for an entire season, it has a chance to crack the next level of contenders.

Indiana Fever

Of course Caitlin Clark has to be here.

The rookie sensation propelled Indiana to its first playoff appearance in 2016, and it all clicked when the Fever built chemistry; they ended the season 17-10 after a 3-10 start. There’s no question the offense is among the best in the league, but the defense is going to need to greatly improve if the Fever want to reach the next level after they gave up 87.7 points per game, second-worst behind the Dallas Wings. As spectacular as Clark is, she’ll also need to take better care of the ball after she averaged a league-worst 5.6 turnovers per game.

Aside from Clark, Indiana does have something special brewing − if it keeps its core together. Aliyah Boston really became a dominating post presence in the second half of the season after a tough start, but all eyes will be on if the Fever can re-sign Kelsey Mitchell. She had a career year with the team that drafted her in 2018 and the backcourt could be one of the top duos in the WNBA if she returns. Should Mitchell be back in Indiana, get ready for even more hype surrounding Clark and company.

Los Angeles Sparks

This one is a complete wild card, but could the Sparks really go from worst to first?

Los Angeles had a very unfortunate 2024 when it ranked in the bottom half of nearly every statistical category, on top of first-round pick Cameron Brink playing in only 15 games before suffering a season-ending injury. This prediction hinges on a lot of ‘what ifs?’ Currently, the Sparks have the best odds to get the No. 1 pick in the 2025 draft and if they get it, it’s likely Paige Bueckers. Of course, there will be a learning curve for the Connecticut star, but she has the potential to be a major boost, similar to what Clark did in Indiana. The Sparks also have a great player in Dearica Hamby, one of the best scorers in the league.

Give Hamby some help with Bueckers and with Brink returning and Los Angeles surely should get out of the bottom of the WNBA. But a possible playoff run that shocks everyone? It could happen − maybe.

After an extra day of regular season, Major League Baseball’s 2024 playoffs are set and begin Tuesday with the opening games of the best-of-three wild-card round.

We’re set for quadruple-headers, with the Detroit Tigers and Houston Astros getting things underway at 2:23 p.m. ET on Tuesday. The Baltimore Orioles host the Kansas City Royals at 4:07 p.m., the New York Mets face the Milwaukee Brewers at 5:32 p.m. and the San Diego Padres and Atlanta Braves wrap things up in the nightcap at 8:38 p.m.

The second games will be played Wednesday with potential Games 3s scheduled for Thursday. Winners will move on to the best-of-five Division Series, which begin on Saturday.

Here’s how the USA TODAY Sports MLB team sees this week playing out:

Detroit Tigers at Houston Astros

Predictions:

Follow every MLB game: Latest MLB scores, stats, schedules and standings.

Bob Nightengale: Astros in 3
Gabe Lacques: Tigers in 2
Steve Gardner Astros in 3
Jesse Yomtov: Astros in 3
Scott Boeck: Tigers in 3

Schedule

Game 1, Tuesday: LH Tarik Skubal vs. LH Framber Valdez, 2:32 p.m. ET, ABC
Game 2, Wednesday: TBA  vs. TBA, 2:32 p.m. ET, ABC
Game 3, Thursday, if necessary: TBA vs. TBA, 2:32 p.m. ET, ABC

Kansas City Royals at Baltimore Orioles

Predictions:

Bob Nightengale: Orioles in 3
Gabe Lacques: Orioles in 2
Steve Gardner: Orioles in 3
Jesse Yomtov: Orioles in 2
Scott Boeck: Orioles in 3

Schedule

Game 1, Tuesday: LH Cole Ragans vs. RH Corbin Burnes, 4:08 p.m. ET, ESPN2
Game 2, Wednesday: RH Seth Lugo vs. RH Zach Eflin, 4:38 p.m. ET, ESPN
Game 3, Thursday, if necessary: RH Michael Wacha vs. RH Dean Kremer, 4:08 p.m. ET, ESPN

New York Mets at Milwaukee Brewers

Predictions

Bob Nightengale: Brewers in 2
Gabe Lacques: Brewers in 2
Steve Gardner: Brewers in 2
Jesse Yomtov: Mets in 3
Scott Boeck: Brewers in 2

Schedule

Game 1, Tuesday: TBA vs. RH Freddy Peralta, 5:32 p.m. ET, ESPN
Game 2, Wednesday: TBA vs. TBA, 7:38 p.m. ET, ESPN
Game 3, Thursday, if necessary: TBA vs. TBA, 8:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2

Atlanta at San Diego Padres

Predictions

Bob Nightengale: Padres in 2
Gabe Lacques: Padres in 2
Steve Gardner: Padres in 2
Jesse Yomtov: Atlanta in 3
Scott Boeck: Padres in 2

Schedule

Game 1, Tuesday: TBA vs. RH Michael King, 8:38 p.m. ET, ESPN,
Game 2, Wednesday: TBA vs. RH Joe Musgrove, 8:38 p.m. ET, ESPN2
Game 3, Thursday, if necessary: TBA vs. RH Dylan Cease, 7:08 p.m. ET, ESPN

The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast. Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.

Pete Rose, Major League Baseball’s all-time hits leader who earned a lifetime ban from the sport after he gambled on Cincinnati Reds games he managed, died Monday at 83, the Reds confirmed to USA TODAY Sports. No cause was given.

Rose, whose 4,256 hits are a record that will likely never be broken, was ushered from the game in shame after an exhaustive 1989 investigation determined that he’d placed wagers on the Reds through illegal bookmakers. Rose and Commissioner A. Bartlett Giamatti signed an agreement in which Rose agreed to a lifetime ban from baseball in return for the league not making a formal determination about whether or not he had bet on baseball.

Giamatti died on Sept. 1, 1989, just one week after Rose signed the agreement he crafted. Yet in the 33 years since, three successive commissioners – Fay Vincent, Bud Selig and Rob Manfred – have upheld the ban, and Rose remains ineligible for the Hall of Fame, to the chagrin of some of his fans.

That ban has taken on a whiff of hypocrisy in recent years as a 2018 Supreme Court decision opened the floodgates to gambling on sports, which is now legal in 38 states and the District of Columbia. MLB and other sports leagues have since embraced partnerships with both physical and online sports books, dismaying Rose supporters who saw their hero banished for betting.

Yet MLB and other sports leagues have held steadfastly to punishing players for betting on games in which they participate, as it did in banning infielder Tucupita Marcano for life and issuing one-year suspensions to four other players who the league determined bet on baseball.

Remembering those we lost: Celebrity Deaths 2024

In his retirement, Rose lived in Las Vegas and continued profiting off his name and likeness, signing autographs and haunting baseball in the ways he could, such as staging autograph shows in conjunction with the July inductions of ballplayers at baseball’s Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York; the most recent Hall of Fame weekend was one of the last times he was seen in public.

The deposed elder struck a significant contrast with the brash and scrappy player nicknamed Charlie Hustle, who barreled his way through a 24-year playing carer that took him to Cincinnati, Philadelphia and Montreal before finishing his final three seasons as a player in Cincinnati.

He broke Ty Cobb’s record of 4,191 hits with a single off San Diego Padres pitcher Eric Show on Sept. 11, 1985. By then, he’d been appointed player-manager – taking that post on Aug. 16, 1984 – before ending his playing career in 1986.

But the grim coda to his time in baseball came three years later, when as Reds manager an exhaustive investigation uncovered significant evidence that he’d gambled on baseball. He ultimately served five months in federal prison, in 1990-91, for tax evasion.

While Rose often professed his worthiness to return to baseball, his pleas were often measured against the 225-page Dowd Report, commissioned by Giamatti and executed by former Department of Justice attorney John Dowd.

The report contained alleged betting slips and interviews with Rose and other witnesses. Rose later admitted to betting on games he managed in his 2004 autobiography, ‘My Prison Without Bars.’

“’I’m sure that I’m supposed to act all sorry or sad or guilty now that I’ve accepted that I’ve done something wrong,” he writes. “But you see, I’m just not built that way. Sure, there’s probably some real emotion buried somewhere deep inside. And maybe I’d be a better person if I let that side of my personality come out.

“But it just doesn’t surface too often. So let’s leave it like this. … I’m sorry it happened, and I’m sorry for all the people, fans and family that it hurt. Let’s move on.”

Yet his life choices dogged him well into retirement. In 2017, a sworn statement from an unidentified woman alleged Rose had an inappropriate relationship with her in 1973, when she was 14. Rose acknowledged the relationship but claimed it began when the accuser was 16, the age of consent in Ohio.

In 2022, before a ceremony at Philadelphia’s Citizens Bank Park to honor the 1980 champion Phillies, Rose brushed off inquiries about the specter of statutory rape, telling a female reporter, “It was 55 years ago, babe.” He also told reporters: ‘I’m going to tell you one more time: I’m here for the Philly fans, I’m here for my teammates, OK. I’m here for the Philly organization, and who cares what happened 50 years ago.’

Rose remains baseball’s career leader in games played (3,562), plate appearances (15,890), at-bats (14,053) and, of course, hits (4,256). He won three batting titles – batting a career-best .348 for the 1969 Reds – and had a career .303 average.

He was the cocky cog of the legendary Big Red Machine teams of the 1970s that advanced to four World Series and won championships in 1975 and ’76. He earned MVP honors in the ’75 Series, batting .370 and reaching base 16 times as the Reds won an epic seven-game battle with the Boston Red Sox.

Rose won one more championship in 1980 as part of the Philadelphia Phillies’ “Wheeze Kids,” his hair graying but his hitting ability remaining, as he smacked 42 doubles at age 39.

But he was a Red, above all, and a Cincinnati native and returned to his hometown club in an August 1984 trade that sent Tom Lawless to the Montreal Expos.

That marked the start of Rose’s stint as player-manager, a stretch highlighted by him becoming the Hit King, once and for all. His downfall would come three years later, his lifetime ban following him to death.

(This story was updated to add new information.)

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — Bronny James said he was doing a radio interview Monday at the Los Angeles Lakers media day when he recognized the photographer taking pictures of him.

It was his dad.

You know, LeBron James.

“It was like, what’s going on right now, is literally my thoughts,’’ Bronny told reporters. “Yeah, just trying to take it all in.’’

It is unprecedented, a father and son playing for the same NBA team. Much less the father being the NBA’s all-time leading scorer and a four-time NBA champion.

All things Lakers: Latest Los Angeles Lakers news, schedule, roster, stats, injury updates and more.

So, practice starts Tuesday. The preseason starts Friday. And on Monday, LeBron “Bronny” James Jr. and LeBron James Sr. got off to a nice start.

“Definitely not,’’ Bronny James said with a smile when asked if he planned to ride with his dad to and from practice. “There’s already so much that we’ve been grouped together as I’d like to stay away as possible from that guy.’’

But it’s hard to couple this with LeBron James saying things like, ‘I’ve played in the NBA longer than he’s been alive.’

LeBron James, 39, made his NBA debut in 2003. Bronny, who turns 20 on Sunday, actually was born a month before LeBron’s second NBA season.

LeBron James regards his dream, now a reality

For years, LeBron has said his dream was to play in the NBA with his oldest son. Now the dream is becoming reality. Though not always totally dreamy, it seems.

‘If you have kids, I mean at my age and his age, there’s not really much interaction going on a day-to-day basis,’ LeBron James said. ‘I mean, he comes down, he eats, goes to his room, plays video game.

“I’m down there with my wife, we watching a movie, he’ll stop in. So it’s not much like, ‘Hey, meet me at the table at five o’clock,’ you discuss work. That doesn’t happen.’’

Well, that could change.

Father and son already have been scrimmaging against each other during the NBA’s voluntary workouts.

“It’s a pure joy,’’ LeBron James said, “to be able to come to work every day, put in the hard work, work with your son every day and be able to see him continue to grow. We push each other, he push me, I push him. We push our teammates and vice versa. So just a very joyous moment for not only for myself, but for our family.’’

LeBron James offered no clues about whether he thinks Bronny will spend the full season with the Lakers or also spend time with the Lakers’ G-League team.

“No matter if it’s here with us or if it’s down with the G-League team and him continuing to get better and better and better, I don’t know what that even looks like,’’  he said. “His job is to put the work in, get better and better just like the rest of us, and we want to hold him accountable.’’

Bronny James aware of the critics

Though he apparently has no interest in driving with his dad to and from work, that does not mean Bronny isn’t excited about being on the same team as his father.

‘I think I’m most looking forward to practice just going head-to-head with each other,” Bronny said. ‘I feel like that’s such a crazy feeling to be in practice with your dad competing at a high level, but on the other side of that, having to go against LeBron James is kind of a lot in practice every day.’

Bronny, the Lakers’ second-round draft pick this year, sat down next to the first-round Lakers pick, Dalton Knecht. He knows some people don’t think he deserves a seat at that table, or in the NBA, despite the warm-hearted storyline of playing with his dad.

He said he intends to stick with his same routine and be himself, ‘but also taking the time to tune out all the noise and tune out all the people that don’t think I should be here while also trying to get in the gym, put my work in and keep improving myself everywhere.

“I just continue to try to be myself every day, doing the things I love since I’ve been a kid and just trying to keep that routine up and being myself,’’ he said. “But also taking the time to tune out all the noise and tune out all the people that don’t think I should be here while also trying to get in the gym, put my work in and keep improving myself everywhere.’’

Watching LeBron, Bronny is ‘dope’

Anthony Davis, the Lakers’ star big man, said his locker is directly across from Bronny’s.

“So every time I walk in, it’s just still surreal to me that he is on the same team as his dad,’’ Davis said. “And I get to be a part of it and witness each and every practice, each game, each moment that they have for at least this first year.

“So I can’t wait until they step on the floor together (and) officially make history, but it’s been super dope to watch so far.’’

It might get even more entertaining. A reporter reminded Bronny that LeBron has banished use of the word ‘dad” during Lakers practices.

‘I haven’t given it any thought,” Bronny said, breaking into a grin. ‘Whatever comes out of my mouth when I’m trying to speak to him is what he’s gonna accept.’

Follow Josh Peter on social media @joshlpeter11

(This story was updated to add new information).