Kiyan Anthony gets real on a hypothetical 2 vs. 2 matchup against LeBron and Bronny.
In a chat with Overtime, young basketball star Kiyan Anthony gave his honest take on which team would win in a game between himself and his father (Carmelo Anthony) against Bronny and LeBron James.
“I think LeBron and Bronny would win, to be honest. Just because LeBron is still in the league, he’s still doing what he’s doing. I don’t know but I feel like it will be a close game, like 11-8.”
Kiyan and Bryce (Bronny’s younger brother) are actually teammates on USA’s U17 squad this year. Kiyan, 17, is the teenage son of Carmelo and he’s following a similar path as his dad. The 6’4″ guard is already making a name for himself in the basketball world and he’s clearly very confident in his skills as a hooper.
As he enters his senior year at Long Island Lutheran High School, Kiyan will be gearing up for a transition to the college game where all eyes will be on him and his development as a player. Right now, scouts have him pegged as a four-star recruit with offers from Syracuse, Florida State, and Dayton among other schools.
It’s no secret that Kiyan and his crew have close ties to the James family. His dad, Carmelo, and LeBron James have been close friends for many years now and even went viral for their legendary “banana boat” picture with Dwyane Wade and Chris Paul that broke the internet.
Unfortunately for Kiyan, he’s probably right when it comes to a match against LeBron and his son. Bronny, 19, is now officially an NBA player. And even if he was the 55th pick, it’s more than Kiyan could say right now as a young kid in High School.
Plus, even at 39 years old, LeBron James is still a star in the NBA and is coming off a season where he averaged 25.7 points per game for the Lakers. Meanwhile, for Carmelo, he’s been out of the league since 2022 and is showing no signs of making a return.
As good as the 10x All-Star was in his prime (2013 scoring champion with 28.7 points per game), he fell off pretty quickly after leaving the Knicks and his scoring efficiency got so low that he became nearly unplayable toward the final stretch of his career.
The fact is, LeBron and Bronny are just in an all-around better place than Kiyan and Carmelo right now but you can’t blame the Anthony’s for falling behind. LeBron’s longevity is a difficult bar to reach and Bronny has proven that he can hang with the best of them.
So while the results of the game might be easy to predict, it would still be must-see TV to watch two of the NBA’s most legendary father-son pairings battle it out in a 2 vs. 2 format. Sadly, Carmelo has apparently ruled out a comeback to the court but it won’t stop the fans from trying to imagine it for themselves.