Now 40-years-old and nursing a knee injury from the Los Angeles Lakers’ recent playoff exit, LeBron James still has no reason to retire. Rather, the four-time NBA champion is eager to get back to work thanks to some gentle prodding from his family.
‘They’re like “Dad, continue on your dream. This is your dream. Continue on your focus. You’ve been here for us this whole time,”‘ James told The ᴀssociated Press. ‘When you have that type of support… it makes it a lot easier.’
Of course, eldest son Bronny doubles as a family member and a Lakers teammate.
Both LeBron Sr. and Jr. realized their dreams of playing alongside each other last season, with dad averaging 24.4 points and 8.2 ᴀssists a game in his 22nd season as Bronny made 27 appearances as an NBA rookie. What’s more, the younger James averaged 21.9 points a game in sporadic G League ᴀssignments.
But for all the joy of teaming with 20-year-old Bronny, LeBron considers the prospect of playing a season with 18-year-old son Bryce to be unrealistic. Even by the extraordinary standards of someone entering his 23rd season of pro ball, James admits it would be ‘insane’ to play in the 2026-27 season, when he’ll be turning 42.
‘At this point of my career, you think about when the end is. That’s human nature,’ he said. ‘You think: “Is it this year? Or next year?” Those thoughts always creep into your mind at this point of the journey.
LeBron James is pictured alongside his son and teammate Bronny during a March game
LeBron’s second son, Bryce (pictured), has accepted a scholarship offer from Arizona
‘But I have not given it a specific timetable, date. I’m seeing how my body and family reacts, too.’
As for his own health, James said he is feeling ‘good’ despite the ligament he sprained in April as the Lakers were being eliminated by the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The focus for this summer is to rest, recuperate and work his body back into shape for an eighth season in LA.
‘I have a lot of time to take care of my injury, my knee, the rest of my body and make sure I’m as close to 100% as possible when training camp begins in late September,’ James told the AP.
Just what the rest of the Lakers will look like remains a mystery.
The team does not currently have a first-round selection in this month’s NBA Draft and Lakers president sent rookie guard Dalton Knecht to the Charlotte Hornets at this year’s ᴅᴇᴀᴅline only to have the deal rescinded due to center Mark Williams’ failed physical.
Despite this, Knecht’s immediate future in LA looks clouded. For that matter, LeBron, Bronny and Luka Doncic seem like the only three Lakers destined to return for 2025-26. In addition to Knecht, guard Austin Reaves and forward Rui Hachimura are expected to draw trade interest from rivals, while the Lakers are rumored to be eyeing a defensive cornerstone at center.
A little fatherly advice as hockey great Gordie Howe accepts a gold puck from his sons and teammates Mark and Marty Howe (c) in recognition of his 1,000th goal
Ken Griffey Jr. (left) playing alongside his son and namesake during the 1990 season
LeBron James, Ken Griffey Sr., Bronny James and Ken Griffey Jr. at the 2024-25 opener
Bronny and LeBron are not the father-son duo in American sports history.
In the 1970s and ’80s, hockey legend Gordie Howe played with sons Marty and Mark with the WHA’s Houston Aeros and the NHL’s Hartford Whalers. Then there were Baseball Hall of Famer Tim Raines and his namesake, who played four games together with the Baltimore Orioles in 2001.
And 34 years before LeBron and Bronny shared the floor together in Los Angeles, Ken Griffey Sr. and Jr. teamed up with the Seattle Mariners, once hitting back-to-back home runs.
In fact, the Griffeys were actually on hand in Los Angeles for the 2024-25 season opener, when he LeBron and Bronny played together for the first time.
