LeBron James is entering his 23rd NBA season, an almost unthinkable milestone that continues to redefine longevity in professional basketball. At 40 years old, he’s still producing at an elite level, still the face of the league, and still defying the passage of time. With the recent retirement of Malcolm Brogdon after just nine seasons, LeBron has now officially outlasted eight Rookie of the Year winners who entered the NBA after him, a staggering testament to his endurance and dominance.
The list of those who came and went before him reads like a timeline of NBA eras gone by:
– 2005: Emeka Okafor
– 2007: Brandon Roy
– 2009: Derrick Rose
– 2010: Tyreke Evans
– 2011: Blake Griffin
– 2014: Michael Carter-Williams
– 2017: Malcolm Brogdon
– 2018: Ben Simmons
Each of these players had their moment of promise, their season of brilliance, and their flashes of greatness. Yet none have managed to sustain a career even half as long as LeBron’s.
Emeka Okafor’s career was derailed by injuries, Brandon Roy’s knees gave out just as he was emerging as a superstar, and Derrick Rose, the youngest MVP in NBA history, saw his prime cut short by repeated injuries.
Tyreke Evans and Michael Carter-Williams both peaked early, winning Rookie of the Year awards but never finding lasting consistency.
Blake Griffin’s high-flying years turned into injury-plagued seasons, and Malcolm Brogdon quietly retired at 32 after a solid, if unspectacular, career.
Then there’s Ben Simmons, the latest Rookie of the Year winner whose career trajectory might be the most frustrating of all.
Once viewed as a future superstar, Simmons’ combination of size, playmaking, and defense made him a generational talent. But injuries, off-court issues, and confidence struggles derailed his progress. He is currently a free agent, and with reports that he ghosted the New York Knicks during discussions and was subsequently dropped by his agent, Simmons now appears closer to playing in the Australian NBL than returning to the NBA.
That brings the count to eight Rookie of the Year winners, all drafted after LeBron James who are now out of the league while LeBron remains a top player for the Los Angeles Lakers. And the number could soon grow to nine, as veteran guard Chris Paul, LeBron’s longtime friend and draft class peer, has already hinted that this will be his final season.
LeBron’s longevity is unprecedented. Since being drafted first overall in 2003, he’s logged over 71,000 minutes across regular season and playoff games, the most in NBA history. Yet, he continues to average All-NBA numbers and remains a vital part of a Lakers team still built around his brilliance.
To put LeBron’s career in perspective, consider this jaw-dropping fact: There were 439 active players in the NBA when LeBron debuted in 2003. Twenty-two years later, only one remains, LeBron James. Even more mind-blowing, LeBron has faced 35% of every player who has ever appeared in an NBA game.
While most players fade into retirement by their mid-30s, LeBron is entering his third decade as a professional athlete and remains among the top 10 players in the league.
His continued success at nearly 41 years old serves as a reminder of his discipline, durability, and unmatched basketball IQ. He’s outlasted entire draft classes, multiple MVPs, and now, nearly a decade’s worth of Rookie of the Year winners who once represented the league’s future.
It’s not just longevity, it’s dominance through eras. From playing against Kobe Bryant to sharing the court with Victor Wembanyama, LeBron James has spanned generations. And as long as he’s still performing at this level, his remarkable list of players he’s outlasted will only keep growing.
