This may be the end of LeBron James in the NBA. The 38 year old all-time great looked dejected after his team the Los Angeles Lakers were swept out of the Western Conference Finals by the Denver Nuggets, delivering some cryptic comments in the post-game press conference.
“I’ve got a lot to think about!” said LeBron in the press con. “Just personally, with me moving forward with the game of basketball, I got a lot to think about.”
“When you say you got to think about stuff, what thread should we be pulling on that?” asked a journalist.
“If I want to continue to play,” James said.
“As in next year?” the journalist continued.
“Yeah.”
“You would walk away?” the journalist asked.
“I got to think about it.”
With a quote like that, it’s easy to imagine this might have been his last game.
If this is a question of whether he still has the physical ability, of course, that question is easier to ask: He does. Losing by a heartbreaking two points 111 – 113 to the Jokic-led Nuggets, James scored 40 points, far more than anyone else on his team.
Why LeBron is retiring: All the reasons to go
But there are still question marks. Earlier this season, he hinted he may need foot surgery, and if that happens over the summer, he would likely not be able to make the start of the season. It’s also possible there are other nagging injuries with so many miles on his body after two decades in the league.
This didn’t seem to be a possibility just a year ago. Last summer, he signed a contract extension, so he’s set to make more than $50 million next season.
He’s also been publicly frustrated with his team over the past few seasons since moving to LA, unable to put the right ingredients together to push his team to the level of his previous squads with the Cleveland Cavaliers and Miami Heat. Things were looking up this season, but obviously they were not on the championship level he tried to will them to.
Will they get better next year? Will he be in a position to win with them in 2024? It doesn’t look likely, and that could be a reason to step away.
Why LeBron isn’t retiring: The big reason to stay
There is, of course, one big reason he would want to hang on for at least two more seasons: Bronny, his son.
Bronny will be playing for and attending the University of Southern California (USC) this fall. He would then be draft eligible next summer, able to play for an NBA team in the fall, and theoretically, he could play with his father in the 2024-25 season.
Being on the court with his son has long been LeBron’s dream.
He did, however, make it clear that while that’s still his goal, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s what’s best for his son, and thus it may not be enough to keep him in the league.
“I’m still serious about it,” James said earlier this month when Bronny committed to USC.
“Obviously I’ve gotta continue to keep my body and my mind fresh. I think my mind most importantly, if my mind goes, then my body will just go ‘okay, what are we doing?’ But at the end of the day, if I am, if I’m not, I’ve done what I have to do in this league. My son is gonna take his journey. Whatever his journey is, however his journey lays out, he’s gonna do what’s best for him, and as his dad, his mom Savanah, his brother and sister, we’re gonna support him in whatever he decides to do. Just because it’s my aspiration and my goal doesn’t mean it’s his. I’m absolutely okay with that. My job is to support my son in whatever he wants to do.”
This does leave us with an option 3: Perhaps he retires, and then comes back to play with his son if and when the time is right.
Only time will tell, however, but basketball fans everywhere will have a hard time saying goodbye to perhaps the greatest player of all time if he does indeed go…
In the mean time, anyone for some JumpShot?