LeBron James is still a superstar, but he’s undeniably closer to the end of his legendary career than the beginning. He just completed his 22nd NBA season as the Los Angeles Lakers were knocked out of the first round of the playoffs by the Minnesota Timberwolves. He and Vince Carter are the only two players in league history to play that many. If James returns, he will be the first player ever to play 23 years of NBA basketball.
That, however, is no certainty. When asked how much longer he plans to play on Wednesday, James declined to answer. “I don’t have an answer to that. I’ll sit down with my wife, family and support group … have a conversation with myself on how long I want to continue to play. We’ll see,” James said.
This has been the stance James has taken for the past several years. In 2023, for instance, he issued a startlingly similar quote. “I got a lot to think about,” James said after getting swept by the Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference finals. “Just personally, with me moving forward with the game of basketball, I got a lot to think about.”
Obviously, James — who has a player option worth more than $52 million for the 2025-26 season– returned for the 2023-24 season. But…
