LeBron James is all set to enter the 20th season of his NBA career. This is not the first time an NBA player will be playing the 20th season in their career; players have done that before. But the biggest difference with LeBron is the fact that he is still one of the best players in the league.
He’s coming off a superb 2021-22 NBA season where he did everything in his power to help the Los Angeles Lakers at least qualify for the postseason. Unfortunately, James didn’t get enough support from his teammates, and as a result, the team failed to qualify for the postseason.
But LeBron and the Lakers will certainly try to forget that poor season and focus on what’s next for them. Since LeBron is only going to get older, the Lakers have a very short window of winning another NBA Championship.
Moreover, if the Lakers fail to do so, NBA analyst Skip Bayless believes that James’ time with the Lakers will have a negative impact on his legacy.
(Starts at 10:25):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPZjH19ZqP4
“The King in year 20 is back in the lab and he’s going to have to carry this show because if they miss the play-in tournament again legacy is teetering here because if he ends up with three straight years of a quick exit to Phoenix and then miss the play-in and what if they miss the play-in again. In the end he can end up with three bad years and all he’s got to show for it is I passed Kareem for the all-time scoring record.”
The Lakers likely won’t repeat their mistakes from the last season and will do their best to make it to the playoffs, but even if they don’t and LeBron passes Kareem’s scoring record, that’s still impressive.
Knowing LeBron James, he would still prefer to win a couple of more rings in his career rather than passing Kareem in the all-time scoring record. The best-case scenario would be if he achieves both feats, but do the Lakers have what it takes to help him achieve that? We will find out next season.
