LeBron James Could Retire at End of 2025-26 Season, Says Lakers Insider

Dec 19, 2024; Sacramento, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) walks towards the team bench during a timeout against the Sacramento Kings in the fourth quarter at the Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images | Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images

Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James could call it quits after the 2025-26 season.

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According to Lakers insider for ESPN, Dave McMenamin, James could hang up his sneakers after this upcoming season.

Whether that will be with the Lakers or not is unclear as things stand.

“I think we have to start think about this could be his last year in the league,” ESPN’s Dave McMenamin said. “Rich Paul told me, ‘Yeah there was no extension talk because we didn’t ask for an extension. We didn’t broach the subject.’ … Rich Paul’s point to me was this wasn’t a point of tension. ’It’s not something that we were pursuing.”

"I think we have to start thinking about this could be his last year in the league" 💔

- @mcten on Lebron

(h/t @ohnohedidnt24 )

pic.twitter.com/rGm3pw1a97

— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) July 16, 2025

McMenamin also added that James has been contemplating retirement since he entered his 20th season in the NBA.

 “And so I think you look at it like, yeah, there’s a very limited time in his career.”

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James will soon enter his 23rd season in the NBA, as well as his age-41 season. The 40-year-old superstar has been at the top of his game since he entered the league. For so long, he has shown that he cannot be stopped.

However, with age, his body has started to deteriorate. Nonetheless, he's proven that as long as he's healthy, he can play with the best of them.

James recently picked up his $52.6 million player option ahead of the start of free agency, signaling that a 23rd NBA season is on the horizon.

Still, it remains to be seen whether that season will be spent in a Lakers uniform.There’s been no shortage of speculation about potential landing spots for the league’s all-time leading scorer.

The Lakers, meanwhile, appear to be thinking long-term —and with good reason. James will turn 41 in December, and with a 26-year-old superstar like Luka Doncic now in the fold, the franchise could be set up for another championship window that lasts the better part of the next decade.

There’s been a bit of unease between the Lakers and James this offseason. Whether that tension is legitimate or just offseason noise remains to be seen.

As things stand, it's safe to say James will don the purple and gold at the start of the 2025-26 season.

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