Bronny James and Sierra Canyon versus D.J. Wagner and Camden is a high school basketball clash in the making for two decades

play

The connection between the two young players goes beyond the court as they prepare to meet for the first time in their high school basketball careers on Saturday.

Sierra Canyon and Camden will play in the final game of the GEICO ESPN High School Basketball showcase. The high panthers will be at the center on Saturday. The program is on the cable network, ESPNU.

The fathers of both rising stars were elite prospects in high school basketball.

Current Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James was the first overall pick in the 2003 NBA draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers, after being deemed "The Chosen One" while playing for the St.Vincent-St. Mary Fighting Irish is located in Akron, Ohio.

He quickly became a household name, leading the team to three state titles. His early accomplishments include being the first junior to be named the national player of the year and scoring 31 points in his national TV debut. Oak Hill Academy was founded in 2002.

The Messiah was selected in the first round of the 2002 NBA draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers. He had a prolific high school career that included being named Freshman of the Year and scoring 100 points in a game. He set a New Jersey state record with 3,462 career points and averaged 42.5 points per game before moving to Memphis.

While James is in his 19th NBA season, his professional basketball career ended after four seasons because of various injuries and ulcerative colitis that resulted in frequent hospitalization. He never played in the NBA full time. In 55 games for Cleveland, James and Wagner appeared together. The Messiah started in four of them.

James' career could have been a lot different had he been able to share the court for a long period of time.

LeBron would not have had to leave Cleveland. He told Slam Magazine that if he stayed healthy, he wouldn't have had to leave.

Carlos Boozer, who played with James in Cleveland during the 2003-04 season, shared the same sentiment about the team&s potential.

Who knows if Dajuan Wagner would have stayed healthy? He could have been a three- or four-time All-Star, easily, especially because the next year, we got King James. He could have been in the scoring ranks. He was a scorer.

In a July 2021 post on his social media account, King James said that fellow former Cavalier Wagner was one of the most talented teammates he had ever played with.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by 👑 (@kingjames)

The sons of the two NBA dads will play against each other for the first time on Saturday.

The top-ranked high school junior in the country is the latest player in his family to play for Camden High.

I see D.J.'s jump shot and his build is similar to mine, so he's like me in those areas, but as far as his dad is concerned, he attacks the basket with either hand. D.J. is better than me at the same age, and I know his father will say the same thing.

A key part of the team that recently saw its 44-game win streak end against Montverde Academy is the role played by Wagner Jr.

D.J.'s ability to read defensive schemes to generate clever scoring opportunities is one of the qualities that support his status as the class of 2023's No.1 prospect.

A star- studded fan club has been set up for Bronny, who is the No. 43 junior in the country. He is often compared to his father. Biancardi noted that they both love to be facilitators and have the power to impact the game with their unselfishness, unlike D.J. who has always been his team's primary star. Multiple seniors who now have professional basketball careers were on Sierra Canyon's freshman team. Currently, the Trailblazers have two McDonald's All Americans in the class of 2022, and both have already committed to UCLA and USC.

James grew into a more aggressive role as an upperclassman because he was outplayed by other stars. His aggressiveness was on display in his junior year debut, with a one-handed jam that set the tone for this season.

The teams enter the game after a big performance. Sierra Canyon routed Campbell Hall 122-45 on Wednesday, while Camden High easily handled city rival Woodrow Wilson 100-54 on Tuesday.

The father-son duos were the subject of a photo collages posted by James during his sons' freshman years.

They might be able to re-create the image after the game.