Shams: James is not expected to retire and he will play at least one more season, with a record 23 seasons in his career

May 2 News Today, famous journalist Shams Charania talked about the future of Lakers forward James while participating in the podcast "The PatMcAfee Show".

Shams said: "I would say that LeBron James is not expected to retire. According to my understanding, he will play at least one more NBA season. Think about the next season of 2025-26, which will be his 23rd season, setting the longest career record in history, the 23rd season of the 23rd. The All-Star Game is held in Los Angeles, and he may play in Los Angeles. By then he will turn 41 in December, and he is currently 40. So, he is expected to play at least another season.

"The other factor is whether his youngest son Bryce will have an impact? His son may qualify for the draft next year in 2026. So, if he feels that Bryce might become an NBA player and be qualified for the draft, I think that is the only motivation you can think of to keep LeBron going beyond next year.

"But we also saw his answer last night, and his statement was unclear. Since he was 25 or 26, every time he had his seasons with the Lakers, Cavaliers, and Heat, he has been consistent, 'I will take the time to discuss with my family, I will talk to my advisers and support teams, and then I will come back to make a decision about my future.' Previously it was about the free market decision, about where his next home is. Now it is about whether he will fight and how long he will play. No matter which way he returns to the Lakers, there will be many problems. He has a $54 million player option, will he execute the option or jump out of the contract? My feeling is that he will execute that player option. The next question is what will the Lakers lineup look like? Because LeBron, who is 40, has a lot of time to be the center, I don't think his future is to play at the age of 41. At this stage of LeBron's career, that is not a long-term solution for him."