The day I can’t give everything on the floor is the day I’ll be done – LeBron James

 

Los Angeles Lakers veteran LeBron James has confirmed that he will be returning for his 21st NBA season and there is still some fuel left in his tank. James, 38, said the day he can’t do everything on the floor will be the day he will call time on his career.

James is still fit as a fiddle and had played a key role in taking the Lakers to the Western Conference finals, where they were whitewashed by eventual champions Denver Nuggets.

LeBron James averaged 28.9 points, 8.3 rebounds and 6.8 assists in 55 games in 2022-23. He was selected to play in his nineteenth All-Star games. Furthermore, he leapfrogged legendary Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s all-time points tally.

Meanwhile, James has had a long career and he will become just the sixth player in NBA history to play in his 21st season or beyond — after Dirk Nowitzki, Kevin Garnett, Robert Parish, Kevin Willis and Vince Carter.

“I don’t care how many more points I score, or what I can or cannot do on the floor,” James said after accepting the ESPY award for Best Record-Breaking Performance for passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the league’s all-time leading scorer.

“The real question for me is: Can I play without cheating this game? The day I can’t give everything on the floor is the day I’ll be done. Lucky for you guys, that day is not today.”

The veteran revealed that he loves this game and the passion keeps him going strong at the top level. James also spoke about the recent video in which he is seen coaching Bryce Maximus James, his 16-year-old son.

“Tonight, I want to use this moment to just say something that I’ve said a million times and I will never get sick of talking about it: I love this game. I love the game of basketball,” James said.

“There’s a video going around right now on the internet of me coaching Bryce’s team last weekend and it’s actually pretty funny. I saw a lot of posts with people talking about, ‘LeBron brings the energy to a high school AAU game the same way he would do to a Finals game.’ And to me, that’s the ultimate compliment.

James admitted he has never cheated on the game and has never taken anything for granted.

“In my 20 years playing this game and all the years before, I’ve never, ever cheated the game and I will never take it for granted.”