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Lakers owner Jeanie Buss says LeBron James’ jersey will be retired

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James Foglio
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James Foglio Sports Editor

James is a Basketball Insiders contributor. He earned his bachelor's degree in English and Creative Writing from Southern New Hampshire University. James enjoys watching sports and helping gamblers win money.

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Sports Editor

Updated28 Jul 2023

Los Angeles Lakers owner Jeanie Buss says LeBron James jersey will be retired

Los Angeles Lakers owner Jeanie Buss said LeBron James’ jersey will be retired in the future. Regardless of where the four-time MVP spends the remainder of his NBA career, the Lakers are planning to retire his jersey.

“The standard for having your jersey retired as a Laker is when a player is inducted into the Hall of Fame. I have absolutely no doubt that LeBron will make it into the Basketball Hall of Fame,” Buss told Mark Medina of Sportskeeda.

“When he does so, then we will retire his jersey. Knowing that he will make it into the Basketball Hall of Fame, he will have his Lakers jersey retired, no doubt about it.”


Medina then asked Buss about her reaction to James saying he might retire at the end of the 2022-23 season. “My dad [Jerry Buss] told me many times that no decision should be made after a loss in the playoffs,” she said.

“You give yourself time and space to reflect on things and not make any decisions in those kinds of moments. It was exactly how we treated LeBron. It was to give him his space and time that he needed to reflect and make his decision as to what is right for him.”

At the 2023 ESPYS, James won the award for Best Record-Breaking Performance for breaking Abdul-Jabbar’s all-time scoring record. “When the season ended, I said I wasn’t sure if I was going to keep playing,” he said after accepting his award.

“You know what brings me back every year? It’s watching and coaching my boys and their teammates. … So, yeah, I still got something left. A lot left. I love you all, and thank you so much for watching this journey so far.”

Los Angeles Lakers owner Jeanie Buss says LeBron James’ jersey will be retired in the future; NBA Hall of Famer James Worthy feels James should receive a statue outside Crypto.com Arena

A few weeks ago, Lakers legend James Worthy told TMZ Sports that he believes LeBron James should receive a statue made in his honor outside Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.

“I think his overall greatness, when you have a player like LeBron, who breaks Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s [all-time scoring] record in Los Angeles, does it as a Laker, then wins a championship as a Laker, you can’t argue that he could get a statue in Los Angeles,” Worthy said.

Furthermore, James helped the Lakers win their 17th championship in franchise history in the 2020 NBA Finals against the Miami Heat. The 19-time All-Star will join some elite company in the future if the organization decides to honor him with a statue.


Additionally, there are currently six Lakers statues outside the L.A. arena — including Magic Johnson, Abdul-Jabbar, Elgin Baylor, Jerry West, Shaquille O’Neal, and broadcaster Chick Hearn.

In the 2022-23 season, the 20-year veteran averaged 28.9 points, 8.3 rebounds, 6.8 assists, and 35.5 minutes per game while shooting 50% from the field and 32.1% beyond the arc.

When James returns for the 2023-24 season, he will become the sixth player in NBA history to play in his 21st season or beyond — joining Robert Parish, Kevin Willis, Kevin Garnett, Dirk Nowitzki, and Vince Carter, who has the all-time record with 22.

How many more seasons will he play? James, 38, could become the first player in NBA history to receive a 20th All-Star selection and become a 20-time All-NBA member next season. Not to mention, the future Hall of Famer plans to add to his all-time scoring record.

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