At 40, LeBron feels he can play “5 to 7 more”
LeBron James, who celebrated his 40th birthday on Monday, says he could play at a high level for “another 5 to 7 years” if he decided to do so.
EL SEGUNDO, California – The gray in the beard of LeBron James were unmistakable when he addressed reporters Monday after practice. Los Angeles Lakers, on his 40th birthday.
“I had a mid-30s, so just waking up and saying, ‘Oh, damn, you’re 40?'” said James, back with the team after missing Saturday’s game against the Sacramento Kings while recovering from an illness. “It’s a little ridiculous, really, knowing where I am, seeing where I am, still playing at a high level, being such a young man but old in the scheme of how many years I have in this profession.”
James, who was the youngest player in league history to reach career scoring plateaus of 1,000 to 40,000 points, is now just the second to play 22 seasons, tying Hall of Famer Vince Carter.
And when he faces his former team, the Cleveland Cavaliers, On Tuesday, he will become the 32nd player to appear in an NBA game at age 40, according to AM850 Research.
While James admitted that he has “of course” thought about retirement more than ever, the four-time champion (who just won the gold medal with Team USA at the Paris Olympics and won the World Player of the Year award) Tournament MVP) said he could play much longer, if he so chose.
“To be honest, if I really wanted to, I could play this game at a high level for probably another year, it’s weird that I can say this, but probably another 5 or 7 years if I wanted to,” James said. “But I’m not going to do that.”
James’ production this season would back up that claim. He is averaging 23.5 points on 49.6% shooting, 9.0 assists and 7.9 rebounds per night while appearing in 28 of the Lakers’ 31 games.
As he approached Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s all-time scoring record during the 2022-23 season, James told AM850 that the last thing he expected to accomplish after the scoring feat would be sharing the court with his son, Bronny James.
The Lakers player, who is currently only 1.5 games out of fourth place in the Western Conference, managed to win the title, closing the second quarter of Los Angeles’ victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves with Bronny, whom the Lakers selected 55th overall in the second round of the draft in June.
“You came in as an 18-year-old kid and now you’re sitting here as a 40-year-old veteran with a 20-year-old kid in the NBA, too,” James said Monday. “So it’s great.”
James told AM850 that his last remaining motivation is the opportunity to compete for a fifth championship.
James was asked if the Lakers, who are currently just 1.5 games out of No. 4 in the Western Conference, managed to win the title, would it extend his time in the NBA with the opportunity to compete for another or free him up to leave on top? ?
“If you ask that question, the first person I thought of was Jason Kelce,” James said, referring to the former Philadelphia Eagles center who now works as an NFL analyst for AM850. “Earlier this year, you had an interview with Jalen Hurts and you talked about that same factor, the fact that (the Eagles) are extremely good this year and have you thought about coming back and maybe not retiring? Of course you have. But he is very happy with the decision he has made.” And the Lakers?
“Right now, I think we’re a very good team,” James said. “I think we have a chance to compete with anyone in the league. Are we at a championship level? Can we win a championship right now? No, I don’t think so. But that’s good because we have a lot of room for improvement… I don’t know “Whether that will determine whether I stay longer because it doesn’t change my career in any way, shape or form.”
While James was unsure of the Lakers’ current championship chances, he was more adamant that the franchise will be the last one he plays for.
“That’s the plan,” James said. “I would love for it to end here. That would be the plan. I came here to play the last stage of my career and finish it here. But I’m not stupid either… (not) for not knowing the basketball business. But I think my relationship with “This organization speaks for itself. And I hope I don’t have to go anywhere before my career is over.”
