LeBron James turns 42 years old in 2026, and the question of what comes next refuses to go away. With the Los Angeles Lakers star set to hit free agency this offseason, the NBA world is debating not just whether he plays on, but where.
Now, one of his closest allies has entered the conversation, with a preferred destination that he’s keeping to himself.
Dwyane Wade Discusses LeBron James’ NBA Future
Every summer, the same debate resurfaces: Is this finally the year LeBron James hangs it up? And every summer, James answers the question the only way he knows how: by showing up again and producing at a level that makes the conversation feel premature.
Dwyane Wade, who has watched his longtime friend and former teammate defy the calendar year after year, is not ready to entertain the retirement narrative just yet.
Appearing on the “Big Pod with Shaq” podcast alongside host Adam Lefkoe, Wade said he believed James still has runway left, not one more season, but two.
“I think two,” Wade said. “I think he can play two more.”
And when the question turned to where James might spend those final chapters, Wade was not shy about having a preference.
“I got a team I would like for him to go to if he wants to play two more, and it ain’t Utah, as a fan,” he said. He quickly clarified that he wasn’t talking about the Jazz (since he’s a minority owner of the team).
When pressed by Lefkoe on whether he meant the Miami Heat, Wade said no. When the Cleveland Cavaliers came up, they appeared to draw a head shake. The New York Knicks got no response at all. Wade’s preferred landing spot for James remains a mystery, but he clearly has one.
Could he be talking about James remaining in Los Angeles? Does he want his close friend to team up with Stephen Curry on the Golden State Warriors? Is it possible he was talking about the Jazz, but caught himself just in time to avoid a tampering fine from the NBA?
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This is consistent with how Wade has spoken about James for some time now. Back in 2025, he made clear that what James was doing in his 40s had no real historical parallel in basketball. He noted then that while the sport had seen players age gracefully, it had never witnessed this level of sustained dominance from someone this deep into their career.
“It’s no secret all of us are amazed. We haven’t seen an athlete in basketball do this,” Wade said. “We watched Tom Brady still be dominant in football when he reached 40, but it’s not something we’ve seen in basketball at this level. We’ve seen people play into their 40s or 20th year in the league, but we haven’t seen this level of dominance where some nights you watch him, and you don’t see a dropoff at all.”
Those comments reflected a genuine awe that Wade has carried into the present. Maybe this is why he is so eager to keep James on the floor for as long as possible.
James, for his part, has never sounded like a man counting down the days. When asked recently what the game means to him, he described basketball as the foundation of everything he has built:Â his platform, his philanthropy, and his identity. When asked how he would write the ending to his career, he said simply that he wanted to be smiling. That does not sound like someone ready to walk away.
Although if he really wants to change teams (and it seems possible given how things are panning out with the Lakers), a return to Cleveland would carry a lot of weight, both emotionally and competitively.
James is the hometown hero who delivered the city its first major professional sports championship in 2016. The Cavaliers are a genuine Eastern Conference contender. It’s where he started his NBA career, so will it also be where he finishes his playing days? The storyline writes itself.
Whatever franchise Wade has in mind, he is keeping his cards close. The safer bet remains that James will follow the same compass he always has: straight toward the best chance at a ring.
