After missing the first month of competition, 14 games in total and the entire pre-season, LeBron James finally made his debut for Los Angeles Lakers this season, helping his team extend their good track with a 140-126 victory over Utah Jazz. James, recovered from sciatica, played 30 minutes and scored 11 points, while Luka Doncic scored 37 points and assisted 10 times. Lakers have won 11 games and lost 4 this season.
So, it is now official: LeBron James is the first player to start in 23 consecutive seasons of NBA. Will he finish the season? What is almost certain is that he won't stick around until 2028, the year the Olympic Games happen in his city.
He revealed it in an interview on the Mind the Game podcast (via Reuters), where he was asked about his plans to play for the United States in the 2028 Summer Olympics, and he simply said "you already know my answer, I will be watching it".
LeBron James will be 43 in the summer of 2028, so it's safe to assume he will retire before that, having already played more than any other player in the league... and won everything there is to win with USA: a bronze in Athens 2004, and three gold medals in Beijing 2008, London 2012, and Paris 2024.
Stephen Curry, another legend of the team who will be 40 in the summer 2028, was also in the podcast and said that "God willing, I still have the choice and physical option where I could impact the team. Never say never, but I highly doubt it. Highly doubt it." Curry also won the gold medal in 2024, his first Olympic Games due to injuries or long post-seasons.