Following the Los Angeles Lakers’ loss in the Western Conference Finals, superstar LeBron James admitted that retirement is something he would have to think about after 20 years in the NBA. Ultimately, LeBron chose to return to the Lakers for his 21st NBA season, but just how much longer he will continue to play remains to be seen.
His level of play undoubtedly remains amongst the best the league has to offer and while he has to pick his spots more, he still affects the game in so many ways. James also keeps his body in the best possible condition so while this could potentially be his last year, he could also keep going and Lakers owner Jeanie Buss believes the latter is a real possibility.
Buss recently spoke with Sports Central LA and said she would not be surprised if LeBron played another five years, but that will ultimately be up to the Lakers superstar:
“It wouldn’t surprise me if LeBron [James] played another five years. We’ve seen him do things in the last couple seasons that defy anything we’d seen before. But that’s his decision.”
What is great about LeBron’s game is that he has skills that won’t go away just because he gets older. Obviously he isn’t quite the athlete he was 10 years ago, though he isn’t far off, but his court vision, passing ability and overall basketball IQ will allow him to affect the game even as he slows down physically.
James basically operating from the elbow as a fulcrum for the offense like Nikola Jokic or Draymond Green is a role he would thrive in, and he’s still strong enough to get to the basket when he wants to. But as Buss said, the decision to keep playing will be up to him.
He’s made no secret of his desire to share the NBA court with his son Bronny James so as long as that is still a real possibility, LeBron could continue to stretch his career out and stay an elite player while doing so.
Byron Scott believes no one will break LeBron James’ scoring record
If LeBron James does continue to play for five more seasons it means he will continue to increase the gap between himself and everyone else as the NBA’s all-time leading scorer. And former Lakers coach Byron Scott believes LeBron will push that record to a point where no one will catch it.
Scott recently spoke on his belief that James’ level of consistency throughout his career will likely never be matched and he believes the Lakers star will push his career point total beyond 40,000 points and is unsure that will be broken in our lifetime.
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