Lebron James.
Image Press Agency/Nurfoto/ShutterstockGetting beaten up Lebron James The Los Angeles Lakers are uncertain about their future in the NBA after being swept by the Denver Nuggets during the 2023 playoffs.
“I haven’t even started thinking about next year,” the 38-year-old James confessed during a press conference on Monday, May 22, after the Lakers lost in the 2023 Western Conference Finals. “We had a good run, but we missed our target and our target is to win the championship. That’s what this franchise is about, so it’s disappointing.”
The Ohio native, who has been playing in the NBA for 20 years, noted that this season was “very challenging” despite his personal accomplishments. (James made NBA history in February when he surpassed his Kareem Abdul-Jabbar For the most regular season points scored by any athlete. At the time, his scoring total was 38,388.)
“I don’t like to say it was a successful year because I don’t play for anything other than winning a championship at this point in my career,” the former Miami Heat player told reporters after Monday’s game. “It doesn’t do me any good to make conference appearances. I’ve done it a lot. It’s not fun for me to miss the finals.”
The Olympian teased: “We’ll see what happens next, but I don’t know. I have a lot to think about, to be honest. Personally, as I move forward with the game of basketball, I have a lot to think about.” Got a lot.”
James told ESPN later that evening that he was thinking about next year “if I want to continue playing”.
When asked if he would “walk away” from the league, the professional basketball player said, “I have to think about it.”
The four-time NBA champion’s surprising revelation came after James scored 40 points for the Lakers during the team’s Game 4 loss to the Nuggets. The California-based team lost four games in a row to the Colorado Athletes, leading to their elimination.
The Nuggets will now represent the West in the 2023 NBA Finals against the winner of the Eastern Conference Finals. (The Boston Celtics will play Game 4 against the Miami Heat on Tuesday, May 23 at 8:30 p.m. ET. The Celtics are currently three games down in the series.)
James, for his part, has been a fixture in the game since 2003 when he was drafted as the No. 1 player for the Cleveland Cavaliers. He joined the Miami Heat in 2010 before returning to the Cavaliers in 2014.
The Ladder cofounder – who has been dubbed the GOAT by some fans – moved to the Lakers in 2018. Four years later, James signed a two-year contract for $97.1 million.
While the four-time NBA Finals MVP’s future in basketball is up in the air, his eldest son’s career is just taking off. bronnie james Committed to the University of Southern California in May to play for the Division 1 NCAA team.
“I’m so proud of him. It’s an incredible thing,” LeBron said at the post-game press conference of his son’s choice of college. “Unless it’s my great-grandmother or great-grandfather or some kind before my time. Was, to my knowledge, the first of the James Gang to go to college.”
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The LRMR Ventures producer shares with wife Bronnie, 18, as well as son Bryce, 15, and daughter Zuri, 8. Savannah JamesWhom he married in September 2013.