NBA

LeBron James still unsure about his retirement plans but knows he doesn’t ‘have much time left’

Antonio Kozlow Sports Editor

Updated01 Apr 2024

The oldest athlete in the NBA is still putting up some of the highest numbers of his career this campaign, as LeBron James just tied his career-high three pointers on Sunday, dropping nine against Brooklyn in their 116-104 win. Once the game was over, he admitted that the time he has left in the league is “not very long.”

After the Lakers’ win, the press insisted in asking him how long he thinks he can maintain his incredible displays. “I’m not gonna play another 21 years, that’s for damn sure,” he told insider Jovan Buha. “But, not very long. I don’t know when that door will close as far when I’ll retire, but I don’t have much time left.”

The superstar seemed ageless once again, as he participated in his 1,485th career contest during 21st season, and matched his season-high 40 points to catapult his team over the Nets this weekend. “I put in a lot of time working on my craft,” LeBron said.

LeBron James is the only player I’ve ever seen who got a standing ovation for his performance on the road 👑 pic.twitter.com/sTkdcAUANt

— 𝐉𝐚𝐤𝐞 (@SixthManJake) April 1, 2024

As the final buzzer went off, the sellout crowd at the Barclays Center in New York stood on their feet to praise the 39-year-old. The last time he hit 40 points in a single game was two weeks ago when they lost at home to Golden State.

“I was feeling pretty good today, obviously, shooting the ball from the perimeter,” James shared this weekend. “I just try to continually put my game where I have no weaknesses out on the floor, especially offensively. Tonight I had it going from the 3-point line.”

LeBron reached his 77th NBA career 40-point display to tie Oscar Robertson for seventh on the all-time list, which is led by Wilt Chamberlain’s 271. “I love this game. I try to put everything into the game and with it, it gives back to me,” he added. “Anytime I’m linked with the greats -– and obviously Big O was a big inspiration for me growing up, reading about his history –- it’s pretty cool.”

His coach Darvin Ham continued to praise the all-time highest NBA scorer for leading the pack during this road trip. “Just extremely thankful that he packed the cape on this road trip,” he said. “We needed all nine of those threes. (We) kind of dropped the rope in terms of what we were doing… turned the ball over way too much, but that said, you have to just overcome these things… And we were able to do that by some huge shot-making by him.”

Lakers guard Gabe Vincent displayed a ‘real solid’ performance after his three-month absence

We are only three weeks away from the start of the playoffs and the Lakers are feeling thankful to see Gabe Vincent return to the lineup after missing three months due to injury. The team welcomed him back and saw him finish his night with 2 points, 1 assists, 1 rebound, 1 steak and 2 fouls in 14 minutes of play.

As the Los Angeles squad beat Brooklyn 116 to 104, the purple and gold improved to 3-1 on their six-match road trip, which comes to an end this Wednesday after visiting both Toronto and Washington.

The 27-year-old believes he was ready to contribute to his team. “I wouldn’t step on that court if I didn’t feel like I could help my team win games,” Gabe made sure everyone knew he was feeling strong. “Whatever the role may be, whatever the minutes may be, that’s not for me to decide.”

The guard played for the first time since his arthroscopic surgery on his left knee on December 27, as he replaced teammate Austin Reaves while they were up 36-6 in the first quarter. He then made a turnaround 8-footer off the glass and extended his team’s lead by 24 points.

The following quarter, he handed out his only assist by drawing defender close to him and leaving Anthony Davis alone to catch a lob pass for an easy score at the rim. “He makes it easy,” he said about the Lakers’ big man. “He’s huge.”