Bronny James, the 18-year-old son of N.B.A. star Lebron James, left the ICU at Cedars Sinai Medical Center on Tuesday after suffering cardiac arrest at USC Galen Center during practice Monday morning.
“We ask for respect and privacy for the James family and we will update media when there is more information,” said James’ family in a statement to ESPN.
The cause of Monday’s incident points towards a genetic condition, according to ABC 7, but until further information comes out, there are no conclusions to be made on what might have caused the cardiac arrest.
The anti-vax community has already begun to swarm social media with comments relating to Bronny’s health, blaming COVID vaccination.
In a now-deleted tweet, Elon Musk claimed “We cannot ascribe everything to the vaccine, but, by the same token, we cannot ascribe nothing. Myocarditis is a known side effect. The only question is whether it is rare or common.”
For years, it has been shown that cardiac arrest is common in athletes. According to the National Library of Medicine, sudden cardiac death (SCD) is the most frequent medical cause of sudden death among sporting professionals.
“A recent estimate of SCD incidence ranged from 1 in 40,000 to 1 in 80,000 athletes per year,” the study claims.
After receiving public praise just over two months ago for committing to playing basketball at USC, Bronny’s future career on the court is now at a standstill.
His father, LeBron, said earlier this year that he wants to play with his son before ending his career in the NBA.
“That would be ideal for sure. Being with [Bronny], spending a full year with him in the same uniform. That would be the icing on the cake,” James said in an ESPN interview last January.
Bronny won’t be eligible to play in the NBA until the 2024-25 season, giving a little over a year to fully recover. Fans continue to have high hopes to see the two, James Senior and Junior, play together in the near future.