Los Angeles Lakers perennial All-Star LeBron James turned back the clock for a soaring block and a powerful dunk during the Lakers’ 127-113 win over Cleveland on Tuesday.
The win made James the winningest player in NBA history, as his 1,229 career regular-season and playoff wins surpassed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
It could be seen as a longevity stat, but James, 41, has repeatedly proved during his NBA-record 23rd season that his high-end athleticism is intact.
James isn’t worried about losing a step or two. On “Bob Does Sports,” the four-time NBA MVP and four-time NBA champion shared what would actually force him to finally retire.
“I personally think it’s literally just the mind,” James said. “If the mind is still in it, then I think everything else will take care of itself. For me, I love the process. If I can continue to be process-oriented, and I’m getting to the arena early, like I always do. Five hours before, locking in, excited about it, then I can do it forever.”
James continued, “But when it gets to that point, if I feel like I don’t want to go early or I don’t want to work out or I don’t want to train, then I’ll be cheating the game. And I don’t want to do that.”
Robby Berger asked James if having his son, Bronny James, on the Lakers has given him “an extra gear.”
James said, “Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely. Absolutely. I have even more of a purpose to show up to work, to work out, to train because I know he’s looking, like, ‘OK, that’s how you be a professional right there.’ So, I have a responsibility with him around.”
The Lakers selected Bronny out of USC in the second round of the 2024 NBA Draft. LeBron and Bronny became the first father-son duo to play in the NBA together during the Lakers’ 2024 season opener. Just last week, they had the first father-to-son assist in league history.
The elder James is in the final year of his contract with the Lakers. This is James’ eighth year in L.A. The Lakers are 50-26 and the third seed in the Western Conference. James has averaged 20.7 points, seven assists, and six rebounds in 55 games.