LeBron James is facing a big decision this summer. He can opt out of next season, which is the final season on his current contract, and become a free agent. While he will likely do just that, there is a quiet sense that he is going to stay with the Los Angeles Lakers on a new deal.
At age 39, he is playing at or near the level he has been accustomed to playing at for the better part of his career, sans the defensive end, where there has been considerable slippage. It isn’t hard to imagine him playing one or even two more years at an elite or near-elite level, especially when one considers how diligently he takes care of his body.
How many more years James wants to play in the NBA, however, could be a different story. It isn’t unheard of for great athletes to call it quits when they still have enough left in the tank for at least one more year of great production.
Rich Paul, James’ agent, said on SiriusXM NBA Radio that he thinks James will play a little longer but making it clear the superstar is closing in on the end of his career (h/t Lakers Nation).
"The guy has committed more than half of his life to the game of basketball"@KlutchSports Founder & CEO, Rich Paul, discussed LeBron’s future when he joined @TheFrankIsola and @Scalabrine 👀#NBAPlayoffs | @RichPaul4 pic.twitter.com/AZkLP1gGGf
— SiriusXM NBA Radio (@SiriusXMNBA) April 29, 2024
“Yeah, you know, I believe so,” Paul said when asked if LeBron will play next season. “Look, I think we definitely have less years with LJ than we’ve already been able to enjoy. But I think there’s a world in which, you know, look, the guy is committed more than half of his life to the game of basketball. I think he has treated it with the utmost respect and been someone to give back to the game. … But I do think, to answer your question, yeah, I think we see him, I don’t know how long we see him play but my conversation with him is just have fun. Just enjoy it because you got a lot less years to play than you’ve already played. So just enjoy the ride, man, it’s been a beautiful ride. … But he’s had an unbelievable career and I think we do see him next year. Now, how many more after that, I do not know. But I think he got maybe two or three years left in the tank, maybe.”
After the Lakers were knocked out of the NBA playoffs on Monday by the Denver Nuggets, James refused to give any clues about his immediate future.
He has always been tight-lipped and even passive-aggressive about his future plans. But this time, unlike a few times in the past when he approached free agency, there isn’t a sense that he’s about to leave his current team.
