LeBron James turned 40 Monday, and while many fans who’ve watched him since he was a teen phenom must now feel very old, the NBA legend said he’s still got plenty of basketball left.
Not one season, or two, as you might expect from an NBA senior citizen. The Los Angeles Lakers star thinks he could go another seven years. Now, that doesn’t mean he’ll play another seven seasons, but he thinks he could.
James made that surprising claim during a talk with reporters. Dan Woike, Lakers beat writer for the Los Angeles Times, asked James how much longer he’ll play.
“What will it be that tells you it’s enough?” Woike asked.
“It won’t be because I can’t play this game at a high level,” James said, “because to be honest, if I really wanted to, I could probably play this game at a high level probably about another … five to seven years if I wanted to — but I’m not going to do that.”
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
James has got nothing left to prove in the NBA. He’d said in recent years one of his remaining goals was to play with his son, Bronny, and he crossed that off the list earlier this season.
James was asked if he’d ever retire and then return a season or two later.
“I will miss the hell out of it, for sure, but no I won’t walk away and come back,” James said.
Again, just because James thinks he could play another seven years at a “high level” doesn’t mean he’ won’t walk away much, much sooner. He’s still playing at an elite level (23.5 points, 9 assists, 7.9 rebounds per game) this year. So, who knows.
ESPN produced a tribute video for James’ 40th, collecting interviews from people around the league.
New video: ESPN collected 40th birthday greetings for LeBron James from a group of teammates and coaches from his past. pic.twitter.com/51avM8crX0
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) December 30, 2024
In case you’re wondering, the oldest player to ever appear in an NBA game was Nat Hickey, who played two games with the Providence Steamrollers (yes, this was a long time ago) in 1948. In the modern era, Kevin Willis set the standard, playing until age 44 in 2007. Other notable oldsters included Robert Parish and Vince Carter, who played until age 43, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Dikembe Mutombo, and Udonis Haslem, who retired at 42.
[Jordan Richard]
About Arthur Weinstein
Arthur spends his free time traveling around the U.S. to sporting events, state and national parks, and in search of great restaurants off the beaten path.