Los Angles Lakers forward LeBron James says he is unsure about his future at the California-based franchise following their 113-111 Western Conference final Game 4 defeat to the Denver Nuggets on Monday night and 4-0 series sweep.
James produced 40 points, 10 rebounds, and nine assists on the night. He missed two potential tying shots in the final minute, bringing an end to the Lakers’ late-season surge that saw them make the play-in tournament, seeing off Minnesota Timberwolves before edging past the Memphis Grizzles and Golden State Warriors to reach the conference final.
The defeat to the Nuggets has cast doubt on Lebron’s future at Crypto.com Arena but the 38-year-old stated he has a lot on his mind at the moment.
“We’ll see what happens going forward,” James said in his post-game news conference.
“I don’t know. I don’t know. I’ve got a lot to think about, to be honest. Just for me personally going forward with the game of basketball, I’ve got a lot to think about.”
LeBron James with a historic Game 4 ????
40 PTS (15-25 FG)
10 REB
9 ASTHe becomes the oldest player in NBA history to record 40 PTS in a Playoff game. pic.twitter.com/s1qaAyGmcF
— NBA (@NBA) May 23, 2023
Despite staring for the Lakers during this playoff series, LeBron does not consider it a successful year for him as a spot in the NBA Finals would have been the usual target.
“I don’t like to say it’s a successful year, because I don’t play for anything besides winning championships at this point in my career,” James continued.
“You know, I don’t get a kick out of making a conference [finals] appearance. I’ve done it a lot, and it’s not fun to me to not be able to be a part of getting to the [NBA] Finals.”
James also asserted he wants to be more available for his teammates having missed part of the season with a foot injury.
“I guess I’ll reflect on my career when I’m done, but I don’t know,” he said.
“The only thing I concern myself with is being available to my teammates, and I don’t like the fact that I didn’t play as many games as I would have liked because of injury. That’s the only thing I care about, is being available to my teammates.”
The highlight of James’ season saw him surpass Lakers legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the all-time leading scorer in NBA history.
James signed a two-year $97.1 million contract extension with the Lakers last August that could keep him at Crypto.com Arena until the 2024-2025 season.
The Akron native has previously stated he wants to prolong his career in order to play with or against his eldest son Bronny. The 18-year-old will be eligible to play college basketball at the University of Southern California next season and could be drafted into the NBA ahead of the 2024-2025 season.
