LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers went out sad in this year’s playoffs, and in all likelihood, James will not be ending his career that way.
Shams Charania of ESPN appeared Thursday on “The Pat McAfee Show.” During the appearance, Charania revealed that the Lakers star James is expected to play for “at least” one more season and will likely pick up his player option for next year with the Lakers.
“My understanding is that he will play at least another NBA season,” Charania said of James. “[LeBron] has got a $54 million player option … My feel is that he probably opts into that.”
Charania also noted that the All-Star Game will be held in Los Angeles, Calif. in 2026 and that James’ younger son Bryce will be eligible for the NBA Draft in 2026 as well.
James will turn 41 years old in December and just completed his 22nd season in the NBA (tying him with Vince Carter for the most all-time). While James’ individual numbers remained superb (24.4 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 8.2 assists per game), he missed 12 games due to injury and also logged his fewest minutes per game since 2020-21.
That said, James now has a new co-star in 26-year-old Luka Doncic who can take the primary offensive load off his shoulders (especially once they get a full offseason to work together). With James indeed holding a player option with the Lakers for next season (actually set at $52.6 million), he will likely be sticking around in Los Angeles for at least one more dance.
