As a former No. 1 overall pick and high school basketball phenom, Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James has dealt with sky-high expectations for many years, and he still deals with them even at the ripe NBA age of 40.
Many folks still expect teams led by James to win at a high level, so when the Lakers got eliminated by the Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round of the 2025 NBA Playoffs, the NBA’s oldest player received some flak. The Lakers ended up as the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference and lost to a sixth-seeded Timberwolves squad.
Former Miami Heat champion Mike Miller believes people pick James apart like he’s still 27. Around that time in his career, James was starring on the Heat and arguably at his peak physically. He was also Miller’s teammate.
“People are still — this is how great he is — people are still picking him apart as if he was still 27,” Miller said. “They’re still judging him and expecting. … People are still criticizing — like, yo, the dude’s 40.”
The Lakers lost in the first round of the playoffs with a superstar tandem of James and Luka Doncic leading the way this season, but it ultimately takes more than two great players to win at a high level in the league. James’ individual numbers against Minnesota were terrific, as he averaged 25.4 points, 9.0 rebounds, 5.6 assists and 1.8 blocked shots per game.
James’ age-27 season came in the 2011-12 campaign, his second season playing for the Heat. He was utterly dominant in that campaign, as he won the league’s MVP honors and then proceeded to take home the Finals MVP award as well after Miami beat the Oklahoma City Thunder in the 2012 championship series.
Across 23 games played in the 2012 NBA Playoffs, James averaged a league-high 30.3 points per game while shooting 50.0 percent from the field.
James is very much far removed from his time playing alongside stars Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh in his 20s, as it’s been more than a decade since he last wore a Heat jersey, but people still expect great things out of James in a testament to his longevity and greatness.
Hopefully, James will return to the Lakers for the 2025-26 season, and if he does, he’ll try to help Los Angeles win the 2026 NBA title in his 23rd season in the league.