LeBron James Revealed If He'd Ever 'Unretire' From Basketball

Here’s A Look Inside LeBron James’ Los Angeles Mansion (1:14)

LeBron James fielded more questions about retirement on his 40th birthday.

The NBA’s all-time leading scorer and oldest active player celebrated the milestone Monday amid his 22nd NBA season. Despite reaching 40, James told reporters he still feels he has plenty left in the tank.

“It won’t be because I can’t play this game at a high level,” James said of retirement. “To be honest, if I really wanted to, I could probably play this game at a high level probably about another — it’s weird that I might say this — but probably about another five-seven years, if I wanted to. But I’m not going to do that.”

When asked if he’d miss the game after walking away, LeBron replied, “Of course.” However, Dan Woike clarified that he was asking if James would come out of retirement like Michael Jordan and Tom Brady.

The Los Angeles Lakers star had a much different reaction to that question.

“Oh, no, no, no,” he said, via Jordan Richard. “I would miss the hell out of it, for sure.”

DENVER, CO – APRIL 29: LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers looks on during the game against the Denver Nuggets during Round One Game Five of the 2024 NBA Playoffs on April 29, 2024 at the Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Bart Young/NBAE via Getty Images)

Bart Young/Getty Images

James hasn’t shown much sign of aging this season. The four-time champion is averaging 23.5 points, 9.0 assists, and 7.9 rebounds per game.

While LeBron has missed three games this month, including Saturday’s win over the Sacramento Kings, he’s not taking much of a condensed role. The 20-time All-Star is still playing 35.0 minutes per game, which aligns with his norm since joining the Lakers in 2018.

At 18-13, the Lakers are fifth in the Western Conference. While he wants another title, LeBron said that won’t be his primary motivator to stick around.

“Right now, I think we’re a very good team,” James said, per ESPN’s Dave McMenamin. “I think we have a chance to compete with anybody in the league. Are we at a championship level? Can we win a championship right now? No, I don’t think so. But that’s good because we have so much room for improvement … I don’t know if that determines if I stick around longer because it doesn’t change my career in any sense or fashion.”

However, James doesn’t want to play for any team other than the Lakers. He’s under contract through the 2025-26 season.

“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.”