**When he takes to the court in October, US basketball star, LeBron James, will become the first NBA player in the history of the professional league to play a 23rd season.**
He’s exercising the $52.6 million dollar option in his contract to remain with the Los Angeles Lakers until the seasoning end April 2026.
It is the biggest deal of the 40-year-old’s esteemed career and trumps the $48.7 million salary he earned last year.
James has been with the Lakers since 2018, winning an NBA Championship in that same year.
He recently returned to on-court workouts after taking several weeks to recover from a knee ligament sprain.
During the 22nd season, the basketball icon became the first NBA athlete to play with his son when Bronny James was signed by the Lakers.
The NBA’s oldest current player had until Sunday afternoon to make his decision on the option, one that pushes his career on-court earnings to about $580 million.
James turns 41 in December.
He’s been an All-NBA pick in 21 of his 22 seasons in the league, including a second-round nod this past season. No other player has more than 15 All-NBA selections.
The NBA's all-time scoring leader has appeared in 1,562 regular-season games, 49 behind Robert Parish's mark of 1,611 — the most in league history.
If healthy, James would obviously figure to break that mark this coming season.