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Minority Business Special Edition 2024 October 09, 2024 Page 9 LeBron and A Vision for the City Bronny James Share the Court Continued from Front Continued from Page 7 son can’t call him “Dad” on the court. “I’m always thinking about, ‘That’s my dad!’, because that’s literally my dad,” Bronny said. “But when I’m playing, he’s just my teammate. That’s all.” Their minutes together weren’t as smooth as they’ll be later in the season: Bronny committed two turnovers and LeBron made another in their first two minutes. Shortly af- ter LeBron hit a 3-pointer mo- ments later, LeBron got the ball to Bronny and set a screen for his son’s 3-point attempt, but Bronny missed. “I was really hoping that wing 3 would have gone in,” Redick said with a smile. “That would have been a cool mo- ment. But they’ll have a lot of moments together, I’m sure.” Bronny came off for a substi- tute 4:09 into the second quar- ter, and LeBron came off 25 seconds later at the next dead ball. LeBron had 19 points, five rebounds and four assists in 16 minutes during the first half, and he watched the Lak- ers’ second half from the bench alongside Anthony Davis. Bronny played about nine minutes in the second half, but didn’t score in the Lakers’ 118- 114 loss to the Suns. “I just told him, ‘Keep get- ting better,’” LeBron said. “He’s young. He wants to con- tinue to improve, and that’s what’s most important. So ev- ery time you get a moment out there, just continue to make winning plays. Continue to learn from his mistakes and make winning plays.” LeBron James is beginning his record-tying 22nd sea- son in the NBA, while LeB- ron James Jr. — known to all as Bronny — was the Lakers’ second-round draft pick this summer. After recovering from cardiac arrest over a year ago, Bronny played just one season at Southern California before entering the draft. Redick had vowed that the pairing would only happen “in the flow of the game,” and wouldn’t be “gimmicky.” “I’m thrilled that I get to be a part of this, I really am,” Redick said. “It’s cool as a basketball fan. I think it speaks to LeBron’s longevity, but also his competitive stami- na that he’s able to still be do- ing this in Year 22. It speaks to the work that Bronny has put in to get to this point, and re- ally just the fatherly care, and certainly the motherly care from Savannah as well. Bron- ny, he’s such a great kid and a pleasure to be around.” The 6-foot-2 Bronny is ex- pected to spend much of the upcoming season working on his game with the South Bay Lakers of the G League, but he will almost certainly get to play alongside his 6-foot-9 fa- ther in a real game early in the regular season. The games that count begin October 22 at home against Minnesota. Although LeBron will turn 40 in late December, the top scorer in NBA history has shown no sign of slowing down with age. LeBron sat out of the Lakers’ preseason opener against Minnesota last Friday night, resting up after a full week of training camp follow- ing a busy summer. Bronny had two points on 1-for-6 shooting and three blocked shots while playing 16 minutes against the Timberwolves. LeBron was early in his second NBA season with the Cleveland Cavaliers when he and his high school sweetheart, Savannah Brinson, became par- ents for the first time in 2004. They had two more children — son Bryce and daughter Zhuri. LeBron and Bronny have been preparing for the chance to play together ever since LeBron returned from a sum- mer vacation after winning a gold medal with the U.S. team at the Paris Olympics. The father and son have scrimmaged together repeated- ly during workouts at the Lak- ers’ training complex, both as teammates and opponents. In the regular season, they’ll join a short list of fathers and sons who have shared a playing field in North American pro- fessional sports. Ken Griffey Sr. and Ken Griffey Jr. played together with the Seattle Mar- iners during parts of the 1990 and 1991 baseball seasons, while hockey great Gordie Howe played with sons Mar- ty and Mark for the Houston Aeros in the WHA and the New England/Hartford Whalers in the WHA and NHL. the first Black woman president in the school’s history. Tiffani also co-led an effort to pass the bond measure to modernize and improve campus facilities. Tiffani currently serves as the City of Portland’s People and Culture Manager, creating poli- cies, leading and directing pro- grams, and implementing change management designed to improve the experiences of those who work within the City and how the City delivers its services to the community. After more than 20 years with the City, Tiffani is no stranger to change and knows a thing or two about how to draft policies and get funding. A few of her long-running accomplish- ments include the City’s We Are Better Together program, the youth Summer Works program, and support of small businesses and technical assistance- all ef- forts that take ingenuity, collab- oration, drive, stewardship and, above all, commitment. Tiffani has a long resume of community service. Most recent- ly, Tiffani serves as Board Chair of KairosPDX, and as a board member of the Northwest Native Chamber and Oregon Human- ities. Her volunteerism also in- cludes board service with Black Male Achievement, Business Diversity Institute, Black Unit- ed Fund, and the Architecture Foundation of Oregon. She is a two-time recipient of the DJC’s Women of Vision Award, the National Association of Minori- ty Contractor’s Chief Award, the City of Portland’s Shining Star Award, and the Northwest Native Chamber’s Warrior Award. Her endorsements span the political and interest-based spectrum, with notable support from a wide variety of groups including SEIU, the NAYA Action Fund, Progreso Lati- no PAC, Portland Association of Teachers, United Portland, APANO Action Fund, the Car- penters Union, Portland Police Association, and Portland Fire- fighters Local 43, to name a few. This is an important moment in the lifespan of the city. Portland is undertaking a transformation in its form of government that has been four years in the making, culminating this November with the election of 12 incoming City Commissions and a City Mayor. Three representatives from each of the four newly-formed districts will be elected in a ranked choice voting model, meaning the top three candidates with the most votes will be elected. The individ- uals elected will be responsible to make decisions on behalf of all Portlanders throughout the City, regardless of the district from which they come. Their decisions will impact us all. In light of the enormity of this responsibility, the City organized the Indepen- dent District Commission to es- tablish the geographic boundaries for each district. As part of this work, the Commission recog- nized that it was imperative that historic Albina in N/NE Portland remain preserved in a single dis- trict and that keeping this com- munity of common interest intact was a priority. Based on census data, there was a 15% decrease in the number of Black residents living in District 2 between 2010 and 2020. As the demographics of N/NE Portland continue to change, there is great importance on finding represen- tatives that understand the histor- ical and current context of those demographic shifts and the com- munities they impact. Differing perspectives on issues of govern- ment accountability, community empowerment, inclusion, and livability often split along racial lines, due in large part to the dif- ferent lived experiences of peo- ple from different communities. In District 2, the disruption and displacement of the Black com- Tiffani Penson speaking at an event. Photo from the candidate. munity from historic Albina con- tinues to have a lasting impact. The City itself acknowledges the disparities and harm that the Black community have endured under City policies and righting those wrongs is a shared respon- sibility. Designing a voting block that honors the preservation of the historic Albina district to reflect its history and common interest is one important step. Howev- er, empowering the voice of that voting block by electing a City Commissioner who truly embod- ies and represents the history and the spirit of the Albina district is quite another. To learn more about the ranked choice voting, go to www.port- land.gov/vote/ranked-choice-vot- ing. To learn more about the City of Portland’s district map, go to https://www.portland.gov/transi- tion/districtcommission/map. To learn more about Tiffani Penson, go to www.tiffaniforpdx.com
