Welcome to our annualLakers season in review series, where we’ll look back at each player on the team’s roster this season and evaluate if they should be part of the future of the franchise. Today, we continue with a look at LeBron James.
The old adage goes that Father Time is undefeated. But every year LeBron James plays, that fact is put under greater and greater strain.
The start of each season brings with it the lingering worry that this might finally be the year that Father Time gets the upper hand. However, perhaps this season more than any recent, LeBron emphatically showed that he still had plenty left in the tank.
While LeBron was incredible throughout the season, this year will be defined by how reliable, and dominant, he was as the Lakers went through a complete franchise overhaul. His best stretch of the season sandwiched the Lakers losing Anthony Davis to injury before acquiring Luka Dončić via trade.
When the Lakers needed a steadying force, LeBron stepped to the plate and guided them, helping ensure this team would avoid the play-in altogether this season and earn home court advantage in the playoffs.
He was rewarded with a Second Team All-NBA selection while leaving fans wondering not if he has one more season left in the tank, but if there are still multiple seasons on the docket.
How did he play?
Reliably, in a word.
Throughout his career, LeBron has been a beacon of reliability. He’s a walking 27-7-7 every game seemingly no matter the circumstances. How often has it felt like he’s sleepwalked through a contest only to look at the box score and see 25 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists?
What was different this season is there was a time when the Lakers really leaned on him and he delivered.
It wasn’t a seamless season. In fact, it started out fairly rough for LeBron. While the numbers were there, like his 39-point outing against the Grizzlies, the effort and focus waned, leading to head coach JJ Redick meeting with him about that in early December following a blowout loss to the Heat.
At that point in the season, LeBron was averaged 22.9 points on 49/34/75 shooting splits through the opening 22 games. For the remainder of the year, LeBron averaged 25.4 points, 7.8 rebounds and 7.8 assists while shooting 52.2% from the field and 39.1% from the 3-point line.
The defining stretch, and likely what this season will be remembered for when it comes to LeBron, came in late January and early February. After losing AD to injury in Philadelphia, LeBron put up a series of incredible performances in the most critical time of the year.
Hours before the AD-Luka trade, LeBron dazzled in Madison Square Garden. The Lakers returned to Los Angeles and he had a dominant first half in a rout of the Clippers. He capped off the stretch with a 42-point, 17-rebound showing against the Warriors with Luka watching on.
All of that fit into a larger stretch where the Lakers went 19-4 from mid-January to early March in which LeBron led the way. At a point when the team very much could have faltered and found itself back in the race for the play-in, LeBron lifted them up, as he’s done many times in LA, and carried them to not just secure a playoff spot, but home court advantage.
None of that is to even speak of his ability to reinvent himself once Luka arrived and integrated himself into the team. Particularly in the playoffs, LeBron refocused his efforts to the defensive end, something he had done all season long but was particularly evident in the postseason.
Could that be a glimpse of what the future of LeBron with Luka could be? How much of a future will those two have together?
If this season proved anything, it’s that LeBron still has plenty left in the tank, no matter how much those feelings of worry may arise in the fall.
What is his contract situation moving forward?
Well, LeBron’s contract situation is of much focus. As things stand, he has a player option for the 2025-26 season worth $52.6 million.
What happens next is where the debate comes in. Will he simply pick up that option and potentially ride off into the sunset in his final season? Or will he decline the option and take another pay cut to give the Lakers wiggle room and the ability to upgrade their roster?
Or will he continue the status quo, opt out of his deal and sign another one-plus-one deal while leaving his future up in the air?
Truly, any of those options feel plausible.
What doesn’t feel plausible, though, is the idea of him retiring this summer, which technically is an option but one few believe.
Should he be back?
This goes without saying, but obviously.
As long as LeBron James is playing basketball, it should be in purple and gold. And it’s hard to imagine a scenario where that isn’t the case.
This season proved that LeBron both has the ability to still be elite while also being able to reinvent himself yet again. Was the playoffs a peak into what LeBron alongside Luka looks like? Was it a stopgap solution to the problems the Lakers had?
There’s a lot of questions about what the future holds for LeBron and the Lakers. Whatever form he may take, though, it remains clear that his battle with Father Time remains heavily in his favor.
You can follow Jacob on Twitter at@JacobRude or on Bluesky at@jacobrude.bsky.social.