Is it possible that one of the NBA’s biggest storylines is also one of its most undercovered? When it comes to LeBron James, it’s certainly starting to feel that way.
On Tuesday, the Los Angeles Lakers will host the Minnesota Timberwolves in what will mark the first game of the 22nd season of James’ career, tying him with Vince Carter for the most seasons played in league history. The longevity is impressive in its own right; only six players have ever played at least 20 seasons in the NBA. It’s even more so when you consider that James is still one of the league’s brightest stars, a consensus top-10 player just months removed from being the MVP of the 2024 Summer Olympics.
As somebody who’s followed James dating back to his high school career, I can’t watch him play without having some version of the following thought cross my mind at least once: “How is he still doing this? He’s nearly 40-bleeping-years-old. How is this not the biggest story in not just sports, but science?”
What’s even crazier is that I’ve been in that internal monologue for at least the last five years.
Yet despite its unprecedented nature, it feels like James’ longevity has just become a footnote in what may very well be the most impressive career in sports history. We focus on his role in the Lakers’ offseason transactions. We focus on his passive aggressive subtweets. Yet we somehow seem to take it for granted that he’s not only playing basketball as long as anyone else in the league has, but he’s still doing so at an extraordinarily high level.
Take for instance the latest headlines surrounding James, which center on the inevitability that he and Bronny James will become the first father-son duo to share an NBA court in the league’s history, likely doing so on Tuesday night. So much of that storyline has focused on the strings the Lakers pulled to make it happen and whether Bronny is a legitimate NBA player. So little of it has seemed to emphasize the more absurd part of the equation: that Bronny’s 39-year-old father is still an active player in the league.
Just consider how many sons of former NBA players are currently playing in the league — Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Devin Booker, Kevin Love, Cole Anthony, Kenyon Martin Jr., Tim Hardaway Jr., Scottie Pippen Jr. and Larry Nance Jr. to name a few. All things considered, the idea of a second-generation NBA player isn’t all that rare. What is rare is an NBA player playing long enough to play with his son — let still being one of the league’s best players.
Having followed James for the better part of the last quarter-century, I’m well aware of how this column will be received, as the idea of James being undercovered at this point in his career is admittedly absurd. Despite playing on a team that will in all likelihood be fighting for a spot in the Play-In Tournament, the four-time MVP remains the NBA’s most high profile player, having cemented his status as a permanent topic on shows like Get Up and First Take.
Yet, as has been the case for most of his career, so much of the conversation surrounding James focuses on the micro at the expense of the macro. Some of that is because expressing amazement doesn’t make for particularly engaging television. And perhaps even more of it is because we’re already so far past the point of his longevity having been accepted as blatantly absurd.
I’m not saying James’ mere presence should lead SportsCenter every night (although from a pure news value standpoint, you could certainly make that case). Rather, I’d merely encourage NBA fans to appreciate the history we’re continuing to witness each season he plays. Because at some point, he won’t. And as cliché as it might sound, we’ll never see it again.
About Ben Axelrod
Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.