There are some wild stats coming out about LeBron James in recent days. The NBA star is in his 23rd season as a pro – that in itself is remarkable – yet as the NBA Playoffs get underway, social media is afire with news and views of the veteran, marveling at how he still is able to turn games on their head at the age of 41. He hasn’t been written off in recent seasons, of course, but there was a sense of his career winding down. Time waits for nobody.
Yet, it is abundantly clear that James remains the undisputed face of the NBA. He is the game’s biggest celebrity, the person to whom the cameras turn, and it looks like he does not want to give up that crown to anyone else anytime soon. His team, the Lakers, is seen as having a fair chance in the NBA Playoffs betting odds found here, but even if he does not go all the way to the Finals and get another ring, he looks set to continue breaking more records, most of them his own.
James’ records speak to a phenomenal career
James is the NBA’s all-time leading scorer. He has played the most games. He has played the most postseason games. He has won more postseason games than some teams have had in their entire history. And he has won the most MVP awards. There are so many scoring and longevity stats that surround him that Wikipedia thought it necessary to create an entirely separate page to list all of his achievements and records, and it is a very, very long page.
There are probably some players that are superior to James on form over the past few years – Nikola Jokic, Luka Doncic (James’ teammate) and Shai Gilgeous Alexander – but they have not yet hit the heights to match his presence. There might be some parallels in other sports, such as Lionel Messi in soccer, but despite being in the twilight of his career, James defines 21st-century superstardom in the NBA.
A family affair in the 2025/26 NBA Playoffs
There is another reason for renewed interest in James recently. He is playing on the same team as his son, Bronny James Jnr. It’s not disrespectful to say that Bronny won’t reach anywhere near the career heights of his father, yet he is making more of a fist of it on his own, getting more minutes on the court compared to last season. The image of father and son appearing together on an elite-level sports team is rare – practically unheard of – so there has been plenty of scrutiny on the James family, as it is such a wonderful story.
Nobody really knows when James will retire. It’s one of the biggest questions in sports. Yet, he is still playing at an elite level, though his game has adapted to suit his age. Still, like the person he is compared to most frequently, Michael Jordan, you get the impression that he will continue to be the biggest attraction associated with basketball long after he hangs up his shirt for the last time.