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It might seem at times like LeBron James can play forever, but the end of his career isn’t too far away now. James is going to be entering his 24th NBA season in a few months, and on an episode of The Shop at the Fanatics Fest, he was asked what he thinks he’ll miss most about basketball after retirement.
“Just the competition and the atmosphere,” James said. “The lights… Obviously the TV know, some arenas know, there’s different levels of lights that they put on when they know it’s a big game or not. They know for sure. They be like, ‘Oh s***, he’s in town? Yo, throw them other lights on tonight.’… I know for sure I’ll miss that.
“Then just like competing,” James added. “We’re all competing for one common goal, and that’s to win that quarter or win that game or win that series or win that championship. So you won’t be able to find that again when you like competing. And the blood, the sweat, the tears of everything that you put into it leading up to that moment. You know, this is the payoff. So yeah, you’ll miss that for sure.”
Basketball has been such a big part of James’ life up to this point. He’s spent more than half of his life in the NBA, and it’s going to feel incredibly strange at first after he walks away. There would be no offseason workouts, no training camp, no teammates, no practices, no games in front of thousands of fans, and so on. It’s going to be an adjustment.
Many professional athletes notably struggle to find a new passion in life post-retirement, but James has golf at least. The 41-year-old started playing in 2025 and has fallen in love with the game.
James has also set up post-retirement plans. He is going to be spending a lot of time with his family and added that he deserves some time for himself, too. James said he has dedicated so much of his life to basketball that he wants to give himself some grace.
As for when James will retire, his agent Rich Paul has said he could play for five more years. Paul personally thinks his client should play 25 seasons, and that is looking likely. James hinted at playing beyond next season on his Mind the Game podcast when speaking about his free agency decision.
“It’s a big decision for not only myself, but for my family as well, and just for the last part of my career on where I want to spend the last few years or the last year or the last two years of my NBA career,” James said.
James certainly has gas left in the tank for two seasons. The 22-time All-Star averaged 20.9 points, 6.1 rebounds, 7.2 assists, 1.2 steals, and 0.6 blocks per game for the Los Angeles Lakers in 2025-26. Here’s hoping James sticks around. As for where he is going next, we still don’t know.
LeBron James Names The One Retired Athlete He’d Like To See Play Again
Staying with the subject of retirement, James was asked here if there’s a retired athlete he would like to see in action again. After some deliberation, he went with the great Tom Brady.
“It’s a great feeling, and I’m a big American football guy, so like seeing a two-minute drive with Tom Brady behind,” James said. “It’s nothing like seeing Tom Brady lead a two-minute drive down four, down six, whatever in a big game. Yeah, I miss those moments for sure. Off the top of my head, that’s the first thing that come to mind.”
Brady, of course, spent 23 seasons in the NFL with the New England Patriots and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He first retired after 22 seasons, but came back to play another season with the Buccaneers.
Brady is appreciated a lot more now that he is retired, and you feel it’s going to be the same story with James. You wish it wasn’t, but fans only truly start appreciating someone after they walk away.
