Has LeBron James (41) played his last game as a basketball player? The LA Lakers lost last night for the fourth time in a row of Oklahoma City Thunder and are therefore eliminated from the NBA play-offs. It is uncertain whether we will see the basketball great as a professional again in the public prosecutor’s office.
With 43,464 points, he is the absolute NBA top scorer, grabbed 12,107 rebounds and gave 12,019 assists. This unprecedented harvest has produced four championships in 23 years. LeBron James’ numbers are of otherworldly proportions, but things still went wrong in four games against Oklahoma. It may also have been his last four; after all, he is by far the oldest active player in the NBA.
After his last match of this season, James did not want to anticipate a possible retirement. “I don’t know what the future has in store for me,” said the star, who now wants to spend time with his family before making a decision. “When the time is right, I will let you know what I have decided.”
“I don’t have to prove anything anymore. I have to find out whether I still feel like being in a gym five hours before a match. It is a heavy burden to compete at the highest level.”
Father time hardly seems to have any grip on LeBron so far. In six of the nine play-off games he played this season, including the eighth-final win against the Houston Rockets, he recorded twenty or more points. He was also good for 24 points last year. In the absence of injured star player Luka Doncic, LeBron still turned out to be the absolute strongman for the Lakers.
The basketball veteran from Akron, Ohio, has been extremely vague about his future all season. Although the four-time MVP previously stated emphatically that he had no need for a farewell tour.
That fact may make it plausible that this was his last season. Although the retreat against OKC was inglorious, it did fit LeBron’s wishes. “I have doubts. Sometimes it feels like I owe it to the fans to declare an official farewell year, but I’m not really good at receiving compliments. I don’t feel comfortable with it,” he said two years ago, ahead of the All-Star weekend in 2024.
Still working longer thanks to your son?
There are enough starting points for a longer life as a professional basketball player – with or without an announced retirement. For example: playing with his son, Bronny James. Since the 2024/25 season, James Jr. also part of the Lakers team. These play-offs, James Sr. provided several assists for his son. It was the first time that a father-son combination participated together in the play-offs.
“I played with my son in a play-off game. That might be the coolest thing that has happened to me in my career. It was incredibly cool to do this with his brother, sister, mother and grandmother present. It meant so much to me that I even blacked out for a moment,” said an emotional James after the first game against the Rockets.
The veteran also previously admitted that playing together with Bronny has given his career a new boost. So the sacred fire does not seem to have been extinguished yet. His son will likely follow him everywhere, but if LeBron wants to move on, he faces an important choice in the winter of his career.
After this season, the top scorer is as free as a bird – his contract expires. Even at a very old age for a top athlete, James is certainly not shy of interest. The Lakers previously expressed their desire to extend the contract, but many other teams are also interested in the signature of the player who many consider to be the best of all time.
Where does his future lie?
Rumor has it that LeBron will leave Los Angeles for San Francisco next season to showcase his skills with the Golden State Warriors. If that happens, he will become a teammate of Steph Curry – the best three-point shooter ever. Curry and LeBron have been the two big faces of the NBA for decades, but have so far only played together for the American team during the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
A return to Cleveland, the city just a few miles south of Akron, his birthplace, is also not out of the question. LeBron made his NBA debut with the Cavaliers in 2003. After an interim period with the Miami Heat, where he won two championships, he returned to his old home after four years.
In 2016, LeBron still became champion with the club where he laid the foundation for his legendary status. The NBA Finals against the Warriors were won 4-3 after trailing 1-3. LeBron won the last NBA championship in 2020 with the Lakers. Whatever the future holds, the past speaks for itself.
Whether it’s the Lakers, Warriors, Cavaliers or nothing at all, LeBron James will be a sports personality that will resonate for generations to come. King James, as his main nickname goes, has more than earned his crown.
