LeBron James Uncertain on Return After Lakers Playoff Exit

LOS ANGELES — LeBron James says he will take time to reflect before deciding whether to return for his 23rd NBA season following the Los Angeles Lakers’ first-round playoff exit at the hands of the Minnesota Timberwolves.

“I don’t know,” James said when asked about his basketball future after the Lakers’ Game 5 loss. “I don’t have the answer to that. It’s something I sit down with my family, my wife, and my support group and kind of just talk through it and see what happens and just have a conversation with myself on how long I want to continue to play.”

The 40-year-old James wrapped up his 21st season in the league averaging 24.4 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 8.2 assists per game, adding to his growing list of career milestones.

Already the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, James became the first player to surpass 50,000 career points in March.

In February, he joined Michael Jordan as the only players to score 40 points at age 40, posting 42 in a win over Golden State.

Later that month, James and the Lakers acquired Slovenian star Luka Dončić in a blockbuster midseason trade, a move that boosted the team but fell short of delivering a deep playoff run.

“Ultimately having a guy like that is very dynamic for any franchise,” James said. “But I don’t know if we had enough time to mesh.”

James also acknowledged the challenges first-year head coach JJ Redick faced in a pressure-filled Lakers environment.

“I thought he handled it extremely well,” James said. “It’s a hell of a lot harder being a rookie head coach coaching the Lakers.”

Despite missing out on a fifth NBA title, James said the season brought a personal highlight unmatched by championships: sharing the court with his son.

This year, James and his son Bronny became the first father-son duo to play in a regular-season NBA game — a moment James called “number one, for sure.”

“That’s not even close,” he said. “To be able to play the game that I love and to be able to be alongside my son, this whole year has been one of the most gratifying, satisfying journeys I’ve ever been on.”

Bronny James spent much of the season developing in the G League, but had multiple call-ups to the Lakers roster.

James said watching his son grow from Summer League to preseason and into the NBA left him “super proud.”

As the offseason begins, James offered no hints on whether he would return for another run alongside Dončić and the Lakers.

“It’s a business, so you don’t know what the roster will look like next year,” he said. “I don’t know where I stand right now.”