Bronny James Says It Was 'Really Important' for Him to Honor Late Rapper Juice WRLD With No 9 Jersey

Bronny James will be honoring late rapper Juice WRLD by donning No. 9 with the Los Angeles Lakers. Hear his explanation and affection for the late rapper.

By Natasha Bose

Published on Jul 03, 2024 | 09:47 AM IST | 53.5K

Bronny James Pays Tribute To Juice WRLD With No. 9 Jersey

In this Article

For Bronny James, honoring Juice WRLD with his No. 9 jersey is very important
Bronny also has a 999 tattoo inspired by Juice WRLD

Trigger Warning: This article contains mention of death.

The Los Angeles Lakers last week inducted LeBron James’ son, Bronny James, into the team. And now, he's honoring Juice WRLD by wearing the No. 9 jersey. The back of his jersey will read ‘James Jr’.

During his introduction as a Los Angeles Laker on Tuesday (July 2), Bronny shared how the late rapper inspired his choice of jersey number in a press conference.

For Bronny James, honoring Juice WRLD with his No. 9 jersey is very important

At the press conference, LeBron's oldest son faced the media for the first time as a Laker. He answered questions about his relationship with his dad, a four-time champion who attended the event. Bronny explained that his jersey number wasn't a random pick.

One reporter asked why Bronny chose No. 9 for the upcoming season. He revealed that the number is a tribute to one of his favorite rappers.

"Juice [WRLD] has just been a big part of me keeping calm in situations that I've been through," James said. "Just paying homage to him, especially because he passed. It's a really important thing for me."

Initially, when his jersey number was announced, Bronny didn’t explain his choice. Some thought it was a flip of No. 6, the number he wore at USC, which his father also wore for the Miami Heat and briefly for the Lakers.

In high school at Sierra Canyon, Bronny wore No. 0, but Jalen Hood-Schifino currently has that jersey with the Lakers.

Bronny also has a 999 tattoo inspired by Juice WRLD

There was much speculation when the Lakers announced Bronny's number last week, especially given the 999 tattoo behind his ear, which Juice WRLD also had.

The Chicago rapper Juice WRLD passed away in 2019 at 21 from an accidental oxycodone and codeine overdose. He had the number "999" tattooed on his arm and often mentioned it in his music and social media. In a 2019 MTV News interview, he explained its meaning.

He said, "If you're a person that believes in anything that has to do with the Bible, I think in the last book of the Bible it says that 666 is the mark of the beast. And that's Satan.” Juice WRLD said that 999 represents taking whatever hell, whatever bad situation, or whatever struggle someone’s going through and turning it into something positive.

This message clearly resonated with Bronny, who not only chose No. 9 for his jersey but also includes "999 LLJW" in his Instagram bio, meaning "Long Live Juice WRLD."

We'll see Bronny in action with his No. 9 jersey for the first time during the California Classic Summer League, starting July 6. Redick confirmed at the press conference that both James and Knecht will play in the California Classic and Las Vegas Summer League throughout July.