Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James, who hit a career-high nine three-pointers in Sunday’s win against the Brooklyn Nets, says his time in the NBA is “not very long”. James said according to The Athletic,
“I’m not gonna play another 21 years, that’s for damn sure,” “But, not very long. I don’t know when that door will close as far when I’ll retire, but I don’t have much time left.”
LeBron James on how long he expects to continue playing in the NBA: “Not very long. … I’m not gonna play another 21 years, that’s for damn sure. But not very long. I don’t know when that door will close as far as when I’ll retire. But I don’t have much time left.” pic.twitter.com/OtJzM6cheI
— Jovan Buha (@jovanbuha) April 1, 2024
James scored 40 points, grabbed seven rebounds, and assisted five times in the Lakers’ 116-104 win over the Brooklyn Nets. The Lakers star, who turned 39 in December, has a player option worth $54.1 million for the 2024-25 season.
Following the option, James is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agency at the end of the 2024-25 season. James is averaging more than 25 points per game for the 20th consecutive season, helping him become the first player in NBA history to reach 40,000 points.
Will LeBron James get to play with son Bronny James ?
According to Jim Sergent and Ramon Padilla of USA Today, James has been an NBA player for longer than he has not been one.
In January 2023, James told ESPN’s Dave McMenamin that he wanted to wait to retire until he could play with his son, Bronny, who had just finished his freshman season at USC.
That was before Bronny suffered a heart collapse during a summer exercise, necessitating emergency surgery and delaying his USC debut. He finished the season with an average of 4.8 points and 2.1 assists in 19.3 minutes per game, largely coming off the bench.
James’ son has yet to determine if he would enter the 2024 draft, with his agent Rich Paul stating that it depends on which clubs are interested in drafting him, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Given the uncertainty surrounding Bronny’s NBA future, it’s unclear whether his draft year will impact James’ decision to sign a new contract. For the time being, the Lakers will hope that James will continue to play in Los Angeles next season.
