Is LeBron James’ career more impressive because he played beyond 40? A closer look
LeBron James' longevity is unmatched, but how does it affect his all-time ranking? Let's take a deep dive.
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LeBron James continues to dominate at a high level even at 40 years old
LeBron James might be one of the most unique examples of a perennial career in the NBA. Not only is the Los Angeles Lakers star in his 40s, but in his 22nd year in the NBA, he still has a case to be amongst the best players in the league. With this age and this much mileage under his body, it’s a testament to his greatness. But how does playing for longer actually affect his greatness?
As an all-time player, it’s easy to argue that James is perhaps the single best basketball player to step onto the hardwood. However, many may argue that while Michael Jordan’s longevity may not stand strong against James, his peak as a player, winning 6 consecutive championships and 2 three-peats, easily trumps what James has been able to accomplish so far.
So why does LeBron James’ longevity deserve greater praise than almost any other NBA player? Even a star like Vince Carter played into his 22nd season before retiring, but it’s hard to argue a case for Carter being the greatest basketball player of all time just for playing longer than most. When it comes to the mileage under James’ body, however, there is a different story to be told. Let’s take a look.
LeBron James’ performance at his age is unparalleled
Modern sports science has done wonders for athletes, allowing many stars to play much further into their careers than yesteryears. Even modern sports science can’t seem to explain how LeBron James still has the athleticism of a 24-year-old at 40 years of age. At age 40, James continues to be one of the most dominant players in the league, with the ability to win a game single-handedly on any given night.
In his 22nd season in the NBA, James is averaging 23.7 points, 9.0 assists and 7.6 rebounds in 40 games this season. No player at this age or beyond their 20th NBA season has ever achieved stats similar or even close to them. The closest players to these stats were Kobe Bryant at 37, averaging 17.6 points on just 35.8% from the field, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, averaging 17.5 points in his 18th season at age 40.
It’s easy to see how LeBron James separates himself from the pack and to continue to play at this level at his age is no light matter. Even Michael Jordan, at the age of 40, barely cracked the 20 points per game threshold while playing on a bottom-feeding Wizards team in just his 15th season before announcing his retirement.
Contrastingly, James is not only a key piece of a Lakers team that still holds championship hopes, but he is also capable of being the best player on a championship-caliber team on any given night. It may not always show on the box score (although it mostly does), but James is the engine that runs every single team he plays on.
LeBron James continues to add to his accolades with every passing day
One of the biggest reasons why LeBron James’ career and legacy continue to improve even as he ages is the fact that he adds to his historic resume almost every other day at this point in his career. Just a few years ago, James broke the NBA’s All-Time scoring record, overtaking Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
Now, every night is another night in history for James. At the level he is playing, he can easily continue to play for many more years. Whether he does that or not is a different case altogether, as James has insinuated that he may be on the verge of retirement. Even so, his statistical dominance only keeps expanding.
Not only has he widened the gap for the all-time regular season scoring record, but James is also far and away the leading scorer in NBA playoff history, 4th in all-time assists, 7th all-time in 3-pointers made, 6th all-time in total steals, 1st all-time All-star and All-NBA selections, and the list keeps going.
It’s easy to keep rattling off stats and records to prove LeBron James’ greatness, but it’s necessary to understand that what James is still able to achieve is abnormal.
Lack of long-term success is hurting LeBron James
While statistically, LeBron James’ longevity has added more and more accolades to his legacy, there still exists a downside. For his detractors, James’ inability to win another championship in the last five years has been a scathing indictment of his GOAT status.
Through the course of his career, James has been to 10 NBA finals but has won just 4 of them. Entering year 22, James still remains 2 championships and 2 Finals MVPs shy of achieving the stature of Michael Jordan when it comes to his all-time peak with the Chicago Bulls. As the saying goes, winning cures all, and Jordan has simply won more important games throughout his career.
While his career has been nothing short of legendary, the longevity of James’ career may not prove to be enough to tip the scales in the GOAT argument. Similar to James, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar had incredible longevity in his career, even winning as many championships as Jordan and leading the all-time scoring ladder prior to his retirement. Kareem also has the most MVPs of any player at 6 – one more than MJ.
Yet, even his legendary career was not enough to surpass Jordan’s achievements for most NBA fans while presenting the title of the greatest basketball player of all time. Commendable as his longevity is, LeBron James’ career might be bound to fall prey to the same dilemma, as Michael Jordan’s dominant peak remains unmatched in the annals of NBA history.
Since his last championship appearance in 2020, Father Time has shown its signs on James, with a decline in his energy and defense on a nightly basis. While he continues to win the battle against time, the lack of success for the Lakers in recent years might just be the tipping point for James’ legacy.
Another title now would do wonders for him, but retiring with 4 rings when all is said and done, might just prove to do more harm than good when it comes to being the greatest basketball player of all time.
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Armaan Gupta
(365 Articles Published)