LeBron James is now playing in year 23 in the NBA. He currently holds the record for the longest NBA career in history. Having that in mind, many are simply waiting for James to announce his retirement.
However, looking at how James is still performing today, it’s as if he hasn’t aged a bit. But how old is James, really? Let’s take a look back at the King’s basketball career.
A Full Retrospective on LeBron James’ Basketball Career
LeBron Raymone James was born in Akron, Ohio back on Dec. 30, 1984. He grew up in Akron, where he found himself playing basketball as he got older. During his high school years, James attended St. Vincent-St. Mary High School, a school that he put on the map given the magnitude of his game. He was a multi-time Player of the Year winner, which garnered him the attention of the entire basketball world.
Said to be the greatest prospect of all time, James then opted to skip college and go straight to the NBA fresh from high school. In 2003, the Cleveland Cavaliers drafted him as the first overall pick, and the rest was history.
In James’ first year, he quickly made an impact in the league and earned the Rookie of the Year award, averaging 20.9 points, 5.9 assists, 5.5 rebounds, and 1.6 steals per game.
James then carried his momentum into greatness, easily earning his first All-Star selection in only his sophomore season. Playing 80 games in the 2004-05 season, His game improved drastically, averaging 27.2 points, 7.4 rebounds, 7.2 assists, and 2.2 steals per game.
In 2007, James led the Cavaliers to their first-ever finals appearance. While he did have two-time All-Star Zydrunas Ilgauskas at the time, the big man wasn’t necessarily in peak form anymore. Having that in mind, he arguably carried Cleveland by himself.
Five years after his rookie season, James finally claimed his throne as the King in the NBA after capturing his first MVP award in 2009. He then went back-to-back, winning the award again in 2010.
In 2011, James reclaimed the MVP award and began his long streak of reaching the NBA Finals. That year, he suited up for the Miami Heat and faced the Dallas Mavericks in the finals. Ultimately, the Heat lost.
The year after, James redeemed himself and led the Heat once again with another MVP season. He finally captured his first NBA title with the help of Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh.
The Heat went back-to-back, capturing their second championship under James. Unfortunately, their streak was broken by the San Antonio Spurs in 2014, who dethroned Miami.
‘King James’ then went back to Cleveland during the offseason and promised to bring home the gold for his hometown. He ultimately delivered on his promise in 2016 after beating the historic 73-9 Golden State Warriors.
From then on, it took a while until we saw the King achieve championship success. In 2018, he took his talents to LA and suited up for the Los Angeles Lakers in hopes of finding more success in California.
Fast forward to 2020, James and the Lakers won arguably the most difficult finals series in NBA history, the bubble championship. This time around, he had Anthony Davis by his side.
Now, in year 23, James is officially the oldest and longest-playing NBA player at 41 years old.
