It appears that Bronny James is getting his own participation shoe.
Reports emerged this week about the impending release of the Los Angeles Lakers guard Bronny’s new shoe for Nike. The shoe is part of the Nike LeBron NXXT Genisus collection and is slated to be released on Sept. 12 (at a reported retail price of $170).
Nike LeBron NXXT Genisus "Bronny James" is releasing on September 12 pic.twitter.com/aaw57IqWmp
— Nice Kicks (@nicekicks) September 5, 2025
Jokes quickly flew over social media about Bronny’s shoe. The jokes were less so focused on the appearance of the sneaker, and more so on the fact that Bronny is already getting a shoe despite having little to show for in his NBA career thus far. Take a look.
When was the last time someone who averaged 2 ppg got their own shoe
— Greedy (@Greedyszn1) September 6, 2025
Imagine someone asking u “who’s shoes u got on” and u gotta say Bronnys
— 2 (@HoodiiShai) September 6, 2025
No thank you. I will stick with my Jeffrey Jordans. https://t.co/1g96mSKW18
— Hubie Talks Hoops (@HubieTalksHoops) September 6, 2025
G League players getting their own shoes now? https://t.co/NO4bZmfRCl
— Yves (@WagwanHarold) September 6, 2025
The 20-year-old Bronny, who averaged 2.3 points per game on 31.3 percent shooting as a rookie for the Lakers last season, first signed with Nike back in 2022 on an NIL deal and has been with them ever since. The apparel giant famously has a longstanding deal with Bronny’s superstar father LeBron.
It is worth noting that Bronny is not a Nike signature athlete and thus the shoe is not his own signature sneaker. Instead, it is a colorway (essentially a variation) of LeBron’s existing collection with the brand.
Nevertheless, the shoe will still carry Bronny’s name as well as his own style. Now the challenge for Bronny will be to live up that billing during his sophomore NBA season, during which he may actually be in line for a bigger role.
