LeBron James offered a cryptic answer when asked about his NBA future following the Lakers’ season-ending loss to the Denver Nuggets on Monday in Los Angeles.
‘We’ll see what happens going forward. But I don’t know,’ James said. ‘I don’t know. I’ve got a lot to think about, to be honest. I got a lot to think about,’ James said after scoring 40 points as the Lakers dropped Game 4 to the Nuggets, officially ending their season with sweep.
‘Just personally with me moving forward with the game of basketball… I got a lot to think about.’
James wasn’t necessarily referring to the possibility of retirement, and resisted questions about his immediate future during Monday’s post-game press conference.
He has previously stated his intention to play alongside his eldest son, Bronny, who will be eligible for the NBA Draft in 2024.
LeBron James offered an ambiguous response to questions regarding his future in the NBA
The 38-year-old was denied by the Nuggets’ Aaron Gordon on the final possession in the loss
Regardless, the future Hall of Famer now enters the off-season weighing both his future with the Lakers and a potential 21st NBA season.
‘It was a very challenging season for me, for our ball club… it was a pretty cool ride, but I don’t know… I don’t get a kick out of making a conference appearance. I’ve done it a lot and it’s not fun to me to not be apart of getting to the Finals.’
Naturally James’ comment ignited speculation on social media.
‘I’m not ready for LeBron to retire,’ wrote one fan.
Others weren’t buying the retirement talk.
‘Everybody knows damn well LeBron isn’t going to retire,’ wrote one fan. ‘I will put my house and everything I own on that.’
James and the Los Angeles Lakers were swept by the Nikola Jokic-led Nuggets Monday night
After finishing the end of Q1 with 31 points, he could only add nine in the remaining quarters
James finished with 40 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists after the highest-scoring postseason half of his career, but even the top scorer in NBA history couldn’t keep the deep, dynamic Nuggets from their sixth consecutive victory overall.
James missed two tying shots in the final seconds, with Aaron Gordon getting official credit for blocking his tying try at the buzzer.
The Lakers erased a seven-point deficit and tied it with five minutes to play, but Jokic hit a 25-foot fallaway 3-pointer. After Davis hit two free throws to tie it with 1:13 left, Jokic put the Nuggets ahead again.
James then badly missed a strange fallaway jumper with 26 seconds left. Jamal Murray missed a turnaround to give the Lakers one last chance, but James’ drive at the buzzer was thwarted by Murray and Gordon, who scored 22 points.
The Ohio native is under contract for next season at $46.7million, and has a player option the 2024-25 season at $50.4m.
