EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — LeBron James said he woke up on his 40th birthday Monday feeling different as he processed being in a new decade. “To just wake up and just be like, ‘Oh shoot, oh damn, you’re 40?’” James said at practice.
“It’s kind of laughable, really, to know where I am, to see where I am still playing the game at a high level, still being such a young man but old in the scheme of how many years I got in this profession.” Advertisement When asked if his thoughts of reaching the finish line of his career have increased as he’s aged, James replied, “Of course,” adding that he has a “very good” relationship with retirement. But he clarified that whenever he decides to hang ’em up, it won’t be because he isn’t capable of performing “at a high level.
” James estimates he could play another half-decade if he wanted to. “If I really wanted to, I could probably play this game at a high level probably for about another — it’s weird that I might say this — but probably about another five to seven years, if I wanted to,” James said Monday. “But I’m not going to do that.
” James is posting unprecedented production for a player in his 22nd season, averaging 23.5 points, 7.9 rebounds and 9.
0 assists on 49.6/35.7/76.
7 shooting splits. He has eight triple-doubles this season and just completed his entire 30s without a single game of single-digit scoring. James made it clear that once he decides to retire, he won’t unretire like Mi.
