LeBron James turned 40 years old today, officially becoming the only active 40-year-old in the NBA right now. James is 22 years deep into his career and has shattered expectations of what ‘longevity’ means for an NBA player.
Despite the miles on his body, the Los Angeles Lakers forward believes he could play for another five to seven years if he wanted to, though he doesn’t want to do that.
“It won’t be because I can’t play the game at a high level. It won’t be that because if I really wanted to, I could probably play this game at a high level for another 5 to 7 years, but I’m not gonna do that… Of course (I’ll miss it) but come back? No. I’ll miss the hell out of it but I won’t walk away and come back.”
Lebron James: “ If I wanted to, I could play this game at a high level for another 5 to 7 years 😳” Question by @DanWoikeSports pic.twitter.com/DCAjf9kZUc
— Jordan Richard (@JordanRichardSC) December 30, 2024
LeBron also made it clear that he’d want his career to end in Los Angeles but made a cryptic comment immediately after.
“I think that’s the plan. I would love for it to end here … But I’m also not silly or too jaded to know the business of the game as well.”
LeBron is averaging 23.5 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 9.0 assists this season, showing he’s still an All-Star caliber performer at age 40.
Fans have been joking about 40-year-old LeBron for the last few years but it feels surreal that we’re actually at that point and James is still actively among the top players in the NBA. He’s no longer the best but he is definitely among the best.
James will be joined in the clan of 40-year-old NBA players by Chris Paul in May, as Paul will also be turning 40 this season, his 20th year in the NBA.
How Many Seasons Does LeBron Have Left?
James will make NBA history if he suits up for the 2025-26 season next year, playing in his 23rd consecutive season and setting a new record. Vince Carter played 22 straight seasons and set the record in 2019-20, but James will likely shatter it and continue putting up over 20 points a game.
LeBron believes his career could last for a much longer time, but everyone can already see that James no longer performs at the level he once used to. He’s still a top 15 player in basketball but there were 10+ years where all we knew was that LeBron James was the best player in basketball, regardless of what the outcome of the NBA Finals was.
In my opinion, LeBron will undertake his retirement tour within the next season or two. His performances have started declining and James wouldn’t want to keep playing just for the sake of it. The maximum he could go into the future would probably be 2026-27 to have a shot at also playing alongside his younger son, Bryce.
There’s nothing left to achieve, as the Lakers don’t seem to be in a position to make a championship run this season. Unless the GM makes additional win-now moves to make the Lakers real contenders, we will likely see LeBron leave the sport very soon.
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