LeBron James and Bronny James are teammates on the Los Angeles Lakers this season, marking the first time a father-son duo has played together in the NBA. Things get weird before the games actually count.

LeBron Sr. was absent from the Lakers’ penultimate preseason game on Thursday night, but LeBron Jr. had a rotation spot off the bench. Bronny played 17 minutes and finished with four points and two rebounds on 2-of-4 shooting. He was a plus-17 in the game! Bronny still appears to be a long way from being a rotation player, but these preseason reps are important to his development.

In the fourth quarter of a close game with the Phoenix Suns, James Jr. chased Suns forward Jalen Bridges down the field on a fastbreak attempt. Bronny seemed to easily undercut him in the air without playing the ball. Bridges crashed hard to the ground and the referees reviewed the play. Ultimately, Bronny was badly fouled.

After the referees called the offense, LeBron James Sr. went to the officials and made sure he got a full explanation. Watch the video here via NBA Reddit.

LeBron clearly loves his son very much and was a protective parent in that moment. The referees made the right decision, so James Sr. actually has nothing to complain about. He probably put Bronny on after the game and discussed how to defend in transition situations like this.

Any interaction between LeBron and Bronny will get a lot of attention this year. New head coach JJ Redick has already said he will play the two together to make NBA history early in the season. Bronny is expected to be relegated to the G League sooner rather than later and will not be included in the Lakers’ rotation this season.

This moment is just another sign that this season with LeBron and Bronny will be sorely tested. The Internet agrees:

The real headline for the Lakers in this game was the electric play of their other rookie, first-round pick Dalton Knecht. The former Tennessee winger scored 35 points on 8 of 13 shooting from three-point range. He hit the shot to force overtime and at one point scored 20 straight points.

This Lakers season will be as fascinating as ever.