LeBron James will continue to rewrite sports history somewhere else. The living hoops legend officially parted ways with the Los Angeles Lakers after eight seasons and one championship, his fourth in a remarkable career that somehow keeps going and going.
ESPN's Shams Charania first reported that James would return for a 24th NBA season, extending his record over former Raptor Vince Carter, who played 22 seasons. Unlike Carter and the others to play at least 20 years in the league, James remains an elite player, having just averaged 20.9 points (his lowest since he was a 19-year-old rookie, but on a higher field goal percentage than his career average), along with 6.1 rebounds and 7.2 assists.
Where Will LeBron James Land Next?
It's expected that James will have several suitors, despite turning 42 in December. Most likely though speculation has him either returning to Cleveland for a third stint, or linking up with fellow greybeards Steph Curry and Draymond Green in Golden State. A Miami return is fun on paper with Giannis Antetokounmpo now there, but it's hard to see a pathway to making that work given the Heat's difficult current salary cap situation.
ESPN's Ramona Shelbourne reported James and his team will talk to "a few suitors" leading up to the start of NBA free agency Tuesday evening, but were in "no rush to make a decision." According to Shelbourne, a source close to the process says there's "no rush" for him to make a decision.
LeBron's Legendary Career Journey
James spent seven spectacular years in Cleveland after being drafted No. 1 overall in 2003, winning his first two MVP awards and leading the Cavaliers to the NBA Finals. He then shocked the sporting world by leaving for Miami to join up with Dwyane Wade and then-Raptors star Chris Bosh. They made the Finals all four years, winning twice and James was Finals MVP both times.
He then stunned again by heading home (he's from Akron, Ohio, like Curry), to rejoin the Cavaliers in 2014. James nearly won a title on his own there, before putting the Cavaliers over the top against Curry's Warriors in 2016, ending a six-decade streak of sporting futility for Cleveland. In that second stretch in Cleveland James repeatedly terrorized Toronto in the playoffs, which resulted in the title 'LeBronto' being bestowed upon him.
Was LeBron's Lakers Run a Success?
James then took his family to Los Angeles and won the championship his first year there in the NBA's COVID bubble in Florida. The Lakers only had one other solid playoff run during his time there and more often were knocked out in the first round (three times) and missed the post-season entirely one year. The writing was on the wall for a James departure from the moment the team stole Luka Doncic from the Dallas Mavericks, it was only a question of when.
Many Lakers fans never truly accepted James, long a rival of franchise icon Kobe Bryant, but he did deliver a 17th championship, which briefly pulled the Lakers even with the arch rival Boston Celtics. The Lakers and James exchanged salutes on X after the news became official. The Lakers posted: "Thank you, LeBron ??" and James replied: "No, THANK YOU! Truly a honor to wear the ?? while trying to continuing the greatness & legacies that came before me! Hope I made a few proud during my stint."
