LeBron James is nearing the end of his legendary NBA career, but he has never given a definitive timeline on his eventual retirement. He still hasn't, but on his 40th birthday Monday, he did offer several important details that at least give us a ballpark.
Most notably, the end is absolutely close.
"If I really wanted to, I could probably play this game at a high level probably for about another -- it's weird that I might say this -- but probably about another five to seven years, if I wanted to," James told reporters. "But I'm not going to do that."
At this stage, James is likely operating on a year-to-year plan. His current contract with the Los Angeles Lakers lasts through the end of the 2025-26 season, but because he has a player option after the season, he is effectively free to choose his circumstances as each offseason arrives. Still, that doesn't mean he plans to leave the Lakers. James said he thinks retiring as a Laker is "the plan" moving forward, but came short of issuing a guarantee.
"I think that's the plan," James said. "I would love for it to end here. That would be the plan. I came here to play the last stage of my career and to finish it off here. But I'm also not silly or too jaded to know the business of the game as well, to know the business of basketball. But I think my relationship with this organization speaks for itself. And hopefully, I don't got to go nowhere before my career is over."
Once LeBron retires, he says he won't come back
What James did guarantee Monday is that whenever he does decide to hang up his sneakers, it will be for good.
"I won't walk away and come back," he said.
The player against whom he has been compared for his entire career, Michael Jordan, retired and returned to the NBA twice. If James finishes this season and then plays one more, he will retire having played 23 seasons in the NBA. That is the uniform number both he and Jordan wore for the majority of their NBA careers.
Of course, there's no reason for James to rush into retirement, especially considering his commitment not to undo such a decision. James is, statistically at least, the best player ever to reach his 40s in the NBA. He may not want to play five-to-seven more years. But short of injuries, it's hard to imagine he doesn't have two or three more years left at a very high level at least.
The Lakers just acquired Dorian Finney-Smith in their first trade of the year. With another big move or two, they could potentially get James back into the championship conversation and confirm once and for all that he retires in purple and gold.
We don't have that much LeBron left to enjoy, and once he's gone, he's gone for good. Monday was another stark reminder of that. Now that he's reached his 40s, it falls on his team, his fans, and even himself to make the most of whatever time he still has in the NBA.
