Lance Larson “winner” of the most controversial swim race in Olympic history is dead at 83.

• January 23, 2024

For 15 glorious minutes at Rome’s Stadio Olimpico del Nuoto on the opening night of the swimming competition, Lance Larson was celebrated as an Olympic champion.Moments earlier on the night of August 26, 1060, Larson, the El Monte High School and USC standout, overtook in the closing meters and then out-touched Australia’s John Devitt to win the 100-meter freestyle final. Devitt congratulated Larson on his victory. Photographers crowded around his lane snapping photos of the new gold medalist.Larson even took a victory lap around the Olimpico del Nuoto pool deck.”And then we started hearing whispers,” Larson would later recall.Larson lost his gold medal in what more than 60 years later remains the most controversial swimming race in Olympic history when Devitt was single-handily awarded the Olympic title by a judge who had exceeded his authority in a decision that  prompted changes in how swimming results are determined and lead to more than six decades of criticism of the International Olympic Committee not only for not interceding in Rome but failing to undo the injustice by not awarding Larson a gold medal in the ensuing years.”It was a bad deal,” Larson later said.

Larson, who went on to be a longtime dentist in Orange, died on January 19. He was 83.

A Celebration of Life will be held March 1 st 11:00am at the Garden Grove Lodge of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks in Garden Grove, California. In lieu of flowers, contributions in memory of Lance M. Larson may be made to the Trojan Victory Fund supporting the University of Southern California Men’s and Women’s Swim & Dive Program at https://usctrojans.com/sports/trojan-athletic-

Blonde, tan and tall (6-feet-1, 174 pounds), Larson looked like he had dove into the waters of Olimpico del Nuoto straight off the silver screen of one of the beach films that were gaining popularity at the time, the ultimate Southern California golden boy.

At El Monte he was the first prep swimmer to break the 50-second barrier in the 100-yard freestyle and the man in the world to break the one-minute barrier in the 100-meter butterfly.

In Rome, Australia’s Jon Henricks, the defending Olympic champion, was eliminated in the semifinals leaving the focus in the 100 freestyle final on Devitt, the current world record-holder at 54.6 seconds, and Larson, then 20.

The pool’s lights were dimmed for the final for dramatic effect, a decision that observers said led to the post race confusion.Brazil’s Manuel Dos Santos led early but was passed by Larson and Devitt with 25 meters to go. Larson touched the final wall underwater, Devitt reaching the finish with a touch out of the water. Peter Daland, USC’s Hall of Fame head coach, later said Larson won the race by half a foot.

“Everybody down there told me I had won,” Larson told reporters after the race.

Indeed the three timers timing Larson had him finishing in 55.0, 55.1 and 55.1. The timers timing Devitt all clocked him in 55.2. But the results at the time were determined not by time but by finishing judges. The three first place judges voted Devitt the winner by a 2-1 vote. But the three second place judges also determined that Devitt was the runner-up by 2-1 vote. An newly developed automatic electronic timing system recorded Larson in 55.10 and Devitt in 55.16. But the system at the time was not used for official purposes.Despite Larson’s edge in both the manual and electronic timing, the swimming competition’s chief judge, Hans Runstromer of West Germany, who had no authority over the matter, took it upon himself to declare Devitt the Olympic champion and ordered Larson’s time changed to 55.2, the same as Devitt’s, a new Olympic record.Runstromer insisted he had been at the finishing line at the end of the race. But photographs and video clearly showed him five meters down the side of the dimly lit pool as far away as 25 meters from where Larson and Devitt finished.U.S. officials appealed Runstromer’s ruling to no avail.”One man got the time and the other got the gold medal,” Larson later said.R. Max Ritter, one of the founding members of swimming’s international governing body, FINA, now World Aquatics, fought unsuccessfully for decades to have the Rome results corrected.”Physical Culture and Sport: Studies and Research,” an academic journal determined in 2009 that “Runstromer’s decision undoubtedly sanctioned untruth.”But the IOC has refused to overturn that untruth, a point that was highlighted in 2002 when the IOC awarded Canada figure skating pairs Jamie Sale and David Pelletier during the Salt Lake City judging scandal.Devitt died last August after a long illness. He was 86.“I think,” Larson once told the New York Times, “John has had to live with the feeling for many years that he probably didn’t really win that gold medal.”

​ Orange County Register 

LA Times slashes more than 20% of newsroom staff as paper confronts ‘financial crisis’

• January 23, 2024

The Los Angeles Times on Tuesday, facing what senior leadership described this week as a “financial crisis,” commenced a round of painful layoffs across the newsroom, a workforce reduction that is set to be one of the most severe in the newspaper’s 142-year history.

The cuts will impact at least 115 journalists, the newspaper reported, or slightly more than approximately 20% of the newsroom. Some 94 of those cuts will be among unionized employees, union chief Matt Pearce said, meaning a quarter of the union will be laid off.

Pearce described the total number of employees being laid off as a “devastating” figure, but said it was “nonetheless far lower than the total number” expected last week.

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A spokesperson for The Times, which is owned by biotech billionaire Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong, did not immediately comment.

The newspaper, which houses the largest newsroom in the western US, has plunged into disarray in recent weeks as it faces a major financial shortfall, losing tens of millions of dollars a year. Its top editor, Kevin Merida, suddenly announced his departure. And two of the four members of an interim leadership team announced by Soon-Shiong have also abruptly exited in recent days.

​ Orange County Register 

Charles Osgood dies at 91; longtime TV and radio journalist for CBS News

• January 23, 2024

By Mark Kennedy | Associated Press

NEW YORK — Charles Osgood, a five-time Emmy Award-winning journalist who anchored “CBS Sunday Morning” for more than two decades, hosted the long-running radio program “The Osgood File” and was referred to as CBS News’ poet-in-residence, has died. He was 91.

CBS reported that Osgood died Tuesday at his home in Saddle River, New Jersey, and that the cause was dementia, according to his family.

Osgood was an erudite, warm broadcaster with a flair for music who could write essays and light verse as well as report hard news. He worked radio and television with equal facility, often wore a bow tie and signed off by telling listeners: “I’ll see you on the radio.”

“To say there’s no one like Charles Osgood is an understatement,” Rand Morrison, executive producer of “Sunday Morning,” said in a statement. “He embodied the heart and soul of ‘Sunday Morning.’ … At the piano, Charlie put our lives to music. Truly, he was one of a kind — in every sense.”

Osgood took over “Sunday Morning” after the beloved Charles Kuralt retired in 1994. Osgood seemingly had an impossible act to follow, but with his folksy erudition and his slightly bookish, bow-tied style, he immediately clicked with viewers who continued to embrace the program as an unhurried TV magazine.

Charles Osgood, seen here in 1999, was anchor of “CBS Sunday Morning” for more than two decades. He took over the program after the beloved Charles Kuralt retired in 1994.

In 1967, he took a job as reporter on the CBS-owned New York news radio station. Then, one fateful weekend, he was summoned to fill in at the anchor desk for the TV network’s Saturday newscast. In 1971, he joined the CBS network.

In 1990, he was inducted into the radio division of the National Association of Broadcaster’s Hall of Fame. In 2008, he was awarded the National Association of Broadcasters Distinguished Service Award.

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When he retired in 2016 after 45 years of journalism, Osgood did so in a very Osgood fashion.

“For years now, people — even friends and family — have been asking me why I continue doing this, considering my age,” the then-83-year-old Osgood said in brief concluding remarks. “It’s just that it’s been such a joy doing it! It’s been a great run, but after nearly 50 years at CBS … the time has come.”

And then he sang a few wistful bars from a favorite folk song: “So long, it’s been good to know you. I’ve got to be driftin’ along.”

Check back for a more complete obituary.

​ Orange County Register 

US OKs $2.5 billion for high-speed rail connecting Southern California and Las Vegas

• January 23, 2024

LOS ANGELES — A high-speed rail line connecting Southern California with Las Vegas got a major boost Tuesday with the approval of $2.5 billion in bonds.

The U.S. Department of Transportation announced the funding, which will be provided via private activity bonds authority allocated for the Brightline West High-Speed Intercity Passenger Rail project.

The 218-mile rail line will primarily run along the Interstate 15 median, with trains capable of reaching 186 mph or more, cutting the trip to 2 hours, 10 minutes — half the time to travel by car, officials said.

“Today, the Biden-Harris administration takes the next step to fulfill the promise of high-speed rail in the American West, with $2.5 billion in private activity bond authority to lay tracks, create jobs, and connect American cities,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said. “President Biden’s historic infrastructure package gives us the opportunity to build safe, green, and accessible rail systems that will deliver benefits to the American people for generations to come.”

An artist rendering shows the proposed Brightline West passenger facility at the Cucamonga Station for the Rancho Cucamonga to Las Vegas high speed rail line during a press conference at the Cucamonga Station in Rancho Cucamonga on Monday, Dec. 11, 2023. The $12 billion project high speed rail project is scheduled for completion in time for the 2028 Olympics (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

The $12 billion Brightline West project will be a fully electric, zero-emission system that officials say will be one of the greenest forms of transportation in the United States. The project is expected to bolster tourism, create 35,000 jobs, ease traffic on I-15 and cut more than 400,000 tons of carbon pollution each year.

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The line will include a flagship station in Las Vegas, with additional stations in Apple Valley, Hesperia and Rancho Cucamonga. The Rancho Cucamonga Station will also connect to Southern California’s regional Metrolink service, allowing for connectivity into downtown Los Angeles and beyond.

“As the first true high-speed rail system in America, Brightline West will serve as the blueprint for connecting cities with fast, eco-friendly passenger rail throughout the country,” Brightline Founder and Chairman Wes Edens said. “Connecting Las Vegas and Southern California will provide widespread public benefits to both states, creating thousands of jobs and jump-starting a new level of economic competitiveness for the region. We appreciate the confidence placed in us by DOT and are ready to get to work.”

The DOT previously approved a private activity bond allocation of $1 billion for Brightline West in 2020, bringing the total allocation for the project to $3.5 billion. In December, the DOT awarded a $3 billion grant from Biden’s infrastructure bill to the Nevada Department of Transportation for the project, and in June, the DOT awarded a $25 million grant to the San Bernardino County Transportation Authority through the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity Program that will be used for the construction of Brightline West stations in Hesperia and Victor Valley, California.

Brightline officials say the project is near shovel-ready and expected to break ground in early 2024. The tentative goal is to have the line open by 2028, in time for the Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.

​ Orange County Register 

CIF-SS girls water polo polls, Jan. 22

• January 23, 2024

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This week’s CIF-SS girls water polo polls, released Monday, Jan. 22.

CIF-SS GIRLS WATER POLO POLLS

(Selected by the CIF-SS Girls Water Polo Committee.)

DIVISION 1

1. Orange Lutheran

2. Foothill

3T. San Marcos

3T. Mater Dei

5. Newport Harbor

6. Laguna Beach

7. Oaks Christian

8. Long Beach Wilson

9. Corona Del Mar

10. San Clemente

Others: None

DIVISION 2

1. Agoura

2. Alta Loma

3. Beckman

4. Canyon/Anaheim

5. Sunny Hills

6. El Toro

7. Mira Costa

8. Edison

9. Long Beach Poly

10. Ventura

Others: Arlington, Bonita, Woodbridge

DIVISION 3

1. Centennial/Corona

2. Marlborough

3. Buena Park

4. Redondo Union

5. La Serna

6. Royal

7. Palos Verdes

8. Aliso Niguel

9. Rancho Cucamonga

10. California

Others: Flintridge Sacred Heart

DIVISION 4

1. Rosary

2. El Segundo

3. Northwood

4. St. Joseph/Lakewood

5. Buena

6. Los Osos

7. Newbury Park

8. Esperanza

9. Glendale

10. Whittier

Others: Hemet, Palm Desert, Santa Monica

DIVISION 5

1. Los Altos

2. Chaparral

3. Muir

4. Troy

5. Louisville

6. Malibu

7. Paloma Valley

8. Lakeside/Lake Elsinore

9. Santa Fe

10. Calabasas

Others: None

DIVISION 6

1. El Modena

2. Saddleback

3. Godinez

4. Monrovia

5. Indio

6. La Quinta/La Quinta

7. Anaheim

8. Chaffey

9. Patriot

10. Notre Dame/Riverside

Others: Moreno Valley

​ Orange County Register 

CIF-SS wrestling polls, Jan. 22

• January 23, 2024

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The CIF-SS dual meet wrestling polls, released Monday, Jan. 22.

CIF-SS WRESTLING POLLS

(Selected by the CIF-SS Boys Wrestling Committee)

OPEN DIVISION WATCHLIST

(Schools in alphabetical order)

Calvary Chapel/Santa Ana

Canyon Springs

Chaminade

Hesperia

Etiwanda

Fountain Valley

Lakeside

Mayfair

Northview

Palm Desert

Paloma Valley

Roosevelt

San Clemente

Servite

Temecula Valley

Walnut

DIVISION 1

1. St. John Bosco

2. Fountain Valley

3. Hesperia

4. Palm Desert

5. Roosevelt

6. Northview

7. Temecula Valley

8. Calvary Chapel/Santa Ana

9. Walnut

10. Canyon Springs

Others: Mayfair, Paloma Valley, Servite

DIVISION 2

1. Etiwanda

2. Chaminade

3. San Clemente

4. Laguna Hills

5. Millikan

6. Trabuco Hills

7. Hillcrest

8. Bishop Amat

9. Ventura

10. Aliso Niguel

Others: El Toro, Lakewood, Long Beach Poly

DIVISION 3

1. Victor Valley

2. Lakeside

3. Redondo Union

4. Cypress

5. La Canada

6. South Torrance

7. Rim of the World

8. Burbank

9. Bonita

10. Arroyo

Others: None

DIVISION 4

1. Chino

2. Santa Fe

3. Sonora

4. Western

5. Highland

6. Quartz Hill

7. El Dorado

8. Coachella Valley

9. La Habra

10. Indio

Others: None

DIVISION 5

1. Cerritos

2. Glenn

3. Bell Gardens

4. La Mirada

5. Santa Rosa Academy

6. Eisenhower

7. Norwalk

8. Newbury Park

9. Thousand Oaks

10. AB Miller

Others: Schurr

GIRLS

DIVISION 1

1. Northview

2. Corona

3. Hillcrest

4. Walnut

5. Santa Ana

6. Mayfair

7. Ventura

8. Downey

9. San Clemente

10. Shadow Hills

Others: Beaumont, La Canada, Laguna Hills, Norwalk, Perris, Long Beach Poly, Yucca Valley

​ Orange County Register 

Uncorked: LA Wine Festival brings wines from around the world to Union Station

• January 23, 2024

Wine enthusiasts can hop off at Union Station in Los Angeles on Saturday, Jan. 27 for the 8th annual Uncorked: LA Wine Festival, which will highlight wines and bubblies from around the globe.

“We call it the complete experience for wine lovers,” said Michelle Harris, founder of Uncorked. “And there’s something for everyone in a very unpretentious setting.”

The festival is expected to attract about 1,500 people to the iconic Los Angeles landmark and take place from 5-9 p.m.

Here’s what else guests can expect from the Uncorked: LA Wine Festival.

The Wine List

More than 150 wines from about 60 wineries from across the globe in all sorts of styles will be poured during the event.  The cost of admission includes all wine tastings, so be ready to sample.

It’s not advised to try to sample all of the wines in one evening, so maybe be a bit selective with your tastings. Harris suggests checking out wineries like Frank Family Vineyard from Napa.

“Their zin is amazing, very jammy, very fruit forward, but also quite bold,” she said.

For those who like something a little lighter, Harris recommends trying wine from New Zealand winery Matua.

“They’ve got some incredible crisp, refreshing whites,” she said.

Aside from traditional wines, there will also be canned wines, seltzers and a few organic tequilas for tasting.

Pairing with Food

Because good wine and good food go hand in hand, the festival will include several higher-end food trucks, like Angelinos’ Wood Fired Pizza.

“Everyone knows pizza and wine are a classic combo,” Harris said.

Also on deck will be Doc Lobster, which serve traditional lobster rolls, Cerda Verga tacos, and Catered Kitchen, which does wine-friendly charcuterie.

“They do these really fun custom charcuterie cones, and, I mean, you can’t say no to wine and charcuterie,” Harris added.

Other trucks at the festival will include Social Pies, the Deli Doctor, Uncle Al’s BBQ and Masa’tlan Kitchen, which focuses on food from Mazatlan, Mexico.

“We’re looking for great combinations and things that are easy for people to eat and that they don’t need to sit down,” she said.

It’s a Party

Uncorked isn’t going to be a stuffy, quiet wine tasting affair.

This annual tradition has become popular because of the wine and the party vibe. There will be DJs spinning music, plus live music from Olivia Pucci and The Southbay Duo, who do jazzy renditions of hip-hop and pop songs.

“She does a rendition of Biggie Smalls that will knock you on your butt,” Harris said with a laugh.

Uncorked: LA Wine Festival

When: 5-9 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 27

Where: Union Station, 800 N. Alameda Street, Los Angeles

Tickets: $80 VIP, $65 general admission at uncorkedwinefestivals.com/la/.

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​ Orange County Register 

‘Like he was trapped in a box’: The oral history of Bronny James’ heart scare

• January 23, 2024

LOS ANGELES — Five and a half months later, the joy courses through Bronny James’ every movement.

Squeakers squeak and music thumps within a sleeping Galen Center this Jan. 3, and James’ mouth twists into an O as he pulls a jumper from the corner. Lenses watch him, patiently, from the baseline, the ones he can never escape. He corkscrews a bounce pass during a pre-game drill with faux razzle. A showman. But only for himself, right now, and no one else.

He leaps, in jest, to fake-contest a shot from fellow USC freshman Isaiah Collier. The arena booms with the bass of Drake and Lil Wayne’s “The Motto,” and James starts mouthing the first verse bar-for-bar with a grin, senior teammate DJ Rodman throwing a good-natured scoff at him.

How you feel, how you feel, how you feel? 25, sittin’ on 25 mil’.

He was free. He is free. And in the sheer normalcy of his demeanor, a 19-year-old bringing a preschooler-goofing-off-on-monkey-bars vibe to warm-ups and a measured game to his first year of college basketball, it’s quietly easy to forget what James has endured.

“I just wanna say I’m thankful for everything,” James said, face devoid of much emotion, after an 84-79 loss to Long Beach State. “Mayo Clinic, everything they helped me with, parents, siblings, supporting me through this hard time in my life. … Also, my coach, teammates, all my other coaches, they’ve been with me since the start, and I just want to say I’m thankful for them.”

That was that. And so life moved on.

Hype around his return, once so great that a standing-room-only crowd of reporters had to shout over each other just to get in a question to coach Andy Enfield after that Long Beach State game, has fizzled amid the injury-plagued Trojans’ 8-11 season and some freshman growing pains. Arizona State fans bellowed o-ver-rated after James missed an end-of-game layup in a loss on Saturday; any shred of a comeback narrative has melted away, replaced by ever-present scrutiny over his development and a basketball future hand-in-hand with his father’s.

So yes: it’s easy to forget, six months ago, James collapsed on a practice court inside Galen.

It was a moment that changed James’ life, stripping all else away to a simple question of life or death. It was a moment that racked those around USC, witnessing a teammate suffer spontaneous cardiac arrest for the second time in two years.

And it was a moment he handled – both in the months to come and in the moment itself – with the same breezy demeanor that has struck most everyone who has come to know the son of LeBron James.

This is the story of the moment of James’ cardiac arrest, told by those inside and outside USC, via months of reporting and interviews done by the Southern California News Group. Quotes have been lightly edited for clarity, readability and grammar, and taken from portions of various interviews done with reporters or one-on-one with the SCNG.

::

It’s the morning of July 24, 2023. The Trojans are winding down a summer workout, about two weeks before the team is slated to leave for a preseason exhibition tour to Europe. 

Boogie Ellis (USC senior guard, captain): We was just playing five-on-five, and it just happened.

Eric Mobley (USC assistant coach): Well, I mean, Coach gave us a break. So I was talking to (Bronny’s) bodyguard, and we were just chatting and everything, and Bronny was right behind me.

All the coaches, especially (head coach Andy) Enfield, we were all talking, and kids are talking, sitting down, having water, and so. And the break was probably about three minutes, I’d say.

DJ Rodman (USC senior forward, transfer from Washington State): We were just, sitting on chairs and all that type of stuff.

Mobley: Coach (Enfield) blew the whistle to get back on the baseline. I was standing up, and Bronny was right behind me, probably about two feet away. And I just heard this thump on the ground.

Boom.

I turned around, I’m lookin’ around, and I looked down, and he was on the ground.

I thought it was like, he was talking to Zach (Brooker), he was talking to his teammate, and I thought something happened where he just – and then I looked again, and I just saw (Zach) kinda staring.

Rodman: I think it was just confusion. That’s all it was. Like, what just happened?

Mobley is no stranger to tragedy. In 1990, Mobley was guarding Loyola Marymount’s Hank Gathers in a West Coast Conference tournament semifinal when Gathers collapsed mid-game and died soon after of a heart disorder. 

Mobley: I thought (Bronny) was having a seizure. I didn’t think he was having cardiac arrest. Because he kind of had his eyes rolling back in his head. So I’ve seen plenty of people go into seizure mode – I was just trying to get him on his side.

I called (USC trainer Jon Yonamine), and JY was already on the floor before I even start calling him. And the whole staff, and how we all reacted and got everybody out the gym – it’s almost like, textbook.

::

A 911 call went out to the Los Angeles Fire Department at 9:26 a.m., according to a recording obtained by TMZ. 

Caller: Listen. Listen. Listen to me. We need an ambulance here now.

Operator: Okay, let’s get next to him, please. Okay. How old is he? Get next to him with the phone, okay. Get next to him.

Caller: Next to him?

Operator: Get next to him, please. With the phone. Okay, I need to find out, is there a doctor on scene with him, or a registered nurse?

Caller: No. There’s no doctor, no nurse.

Operator: Okay, help is already on the way.

In 2022, current sophomore forward Vincent Iwuchukwu collapsed with cardiac arrest under similar summer workout circumstances. Quick action by USC’s staff, including longtime trainer Yonamine – often called JY by the program – helped stabilize Iwuchukwu. 

Mobley: We’ve been there and done that before, which we have. And they had the defibrillator in probably less than 30 seconds.

Andy Enfield (head coach): I think, anytime you have a traumatic experience, the first thing is our outstanding trainers, and our medical staff here. Our trainers are superstars. JY has been with us, we’ve been together 11 seasons now, and Kurtis Schultz our strength coach, his 11th season.

Mobley: We just tried to make sure (Bronny’s) getting back, come back to consciousness. But you can tell that he was hearin’ what we were saying. He just couldn’t move or come out of his – it was like he was trapped in a box, you know?

::

For most on USC’s roster, it wasn’t the first time they’d seen this.

Joshua Morgan (USC senior center): It’s one of those moments where you can’t really predict how you’re going to act.

Kobe Johnson (USC junior forward, captain): Kinda had a similar situation with Vince last year, but – you don’t really know what to do in that situation.

Ellis: I was like, this can’t be happening again. And just to see that twice – well, it’s like my fourth time seeing something like that. So, it’s kind of crazy.

Morgan: It’s definitely hard, it’s definitely challenging if you’ve never seen that before. And even people who have – it’s a very traumatic experience for us, and for (Bronny) as well.

Rodman: I mean, shoot, I don’t think anyone knows this, but I went through the same thing my freshman year (at Washington State) with Deion (James), my boy Deion, and then my boy Dishon (Jackson) last year.

I had to run out. Because I couldn’t handle another one like that. And I know that these guys dealt with Vince last year. I can’t imagine that.

Ellis: It caught us all by surprise. And we were really hurt by it.

Morgan: For some of us who have, unfortunately, been there before – you have the kind of ability to pick people up, take them up to the locker room and then stay together.

We told people, if they needed to go see a sports psychologist, go do it. As I said, it’s one of those moments where you never really know how it’s going to affect you. So, everyone going around saying we’re all here for each other and just stay together as a team, as a brotherhood, really.

But luckily our team was on that. JY and all the staff, they were prepped and ready to go. Very quickly, we heard the good news that he was going to be fine. So luckily, the atmosphere was able to shift.

::

The entire timeframe of when James was out, Mobley said, was less than two minutes. 

Mobley: Things happened so fast. It was like, boom, he’s on the ground.

We had the defibrillator right on him, boom.

Hit him, boom, he popped up.

He sat up for a minute, and got up on his two feet. And we didn’t ask him to get up on his two feet.

Rodman: It was just him. It was just Bronny. It was just who he is. It was like it never happened.

Mobley: He was about to walk out the gym. We’re over by the first basket, over that way. On the baseline. And he’s about to walk out, and we’re like, “Where you goin’, Bronny? We called an ambulance.”

He’s like, “I’m all right. I’m all right.”

I said, “No you’re not. Hold on. Sit down.”

Rodman: We weren’t up here, but 15 minutes after it happened, everyone was saying, like, he was cracking jokes, and all that type of stuff.

Mobley: I was like, “Where you going? Hold on. Do you understand what just happened?”

(Bronny) was mad. And I was like, “Why you mad?”

He said, “I just hit two buckets in a row, Coach, and I wanted to finish practice.”

And so, the love for the game that he has is impressive. And that’s the type of attitude he had. He was truly upset that he didn’t get the chance to finish practice.

He said, “Coach, I was killing ’em.”

::

Headlines broke the next day that James had suffered cardiac arrest. Romeo Travis, part of the St. Vincent-St. Mary “Fab Five” in LeBron James’ high school days, found out about the news from a friend. 

Travis: Once I heard what was going on, we have a group chat with all the guys from high school, so we all jumped in the group chat and were just checking on Bronny and Bron and his mental state, and those things like that.

And then LeBron sent us a message that kinda filled us in on what was going on, and … moving forward, that it kinda put us all at ease.

That day, the James family put out a statement informing the public that James was stable and no longer in the ICU, beginning a 4½-month-long journey of recovery that included a heart procedure and ended with his debut against Long Beach State on Dec. 10.

Travis: You can just only imagine how you feel as a parent. So even if (LeBron) didn’t want to talk, we just wanted him to know that we were there for him. And if he needed, just to bounce anything off of us, just communicate that we were there for him.

Because he’s usually the one there for everybody else. So we just wanted him to know that we were there for him.

Big Boy (radio host, father of Sierra Canyon’s Jayden Alexander and a James family friend): When Bronny went down, bro, that’s personal. Of course, being a dad and being a human being, we don’t want that for anyone. But seeing that happen with him, bro, you hope for the best, you pray for a beautiful outcome.

As a parent, I’m pretty sure with LeBron and Savannah – that scared the (expletive) out of them. Because my wife and I, we’d speak about it as well, like – what do you do when you get a phone call like that? Do you remain nervous now when you watch him play?

Mobley: It was a sad day, that day, to see a kid fall out and do it two years in a row. It just, takes the taste out of your mouth, you know what I’m sayin’. And so, kinda just, gotta try to get through it.

Enfield: I think everybody’s been through a lot emotionally. Bronny the most. And he’s handled it very well. And any time you go through an emotional situation, it’s nice to have teammates and staff that care. And the team, his teammates, did a great job with Bronny.

Ellis: I mean, as soon as (Bronny) was done, we went to see him in the hospital – talked to him every day, in the Snapchat group chat, he’s always cracking jokes and stuff like that.

Rodman: (Bronny’s) just a very positive guy, and every time I see him, it’s just a big smile and a very mature, like, “What’s up.”

Forget who he is as a person – forget who he is in the media, and all the lights and stuff, and just get to know him as a teammate, as a friend. And that’s pretty much what I love, that’s what I’ve loved about getting to know him, and just kind of being – just being there, and always having his back.

Vincent Iwuchukwu: He’s handled it – Bronny’s handled it really well. And I think he’s had a lot of guidance, just like I did from school, and obviously he has a great support system outside of our program.

And I’m kinda glad it happened to me, so I’m able to help him out, whatever situations that he has going on, because I know it’s not easy to get back.

Travis: It just, it shows everybody that they’re humans – they go through things just like everybody else go through things.

To see the family rally around each other, it just lets you know that they’re a real family. Like, this is real life. That family, there’s a lot of scrutiny, there’s a lot of publicity towards the family, for obvious reasons. But for this, this was a moment to show, like, we are a real family. It’s not like, this ain’t for play, this not a made-for-TV-drama.

This is real life.

​ Orange County Register