LeBron James Conquered 40,000 – What’s Next for Him?

“We gonna stop you. You are going 8 tonight.” This is the threat that Nikola Jokić (playfully) made to LeBron, who was 9 shy of scoring 40,000 regular season points. However, Jokic’s threat proved futile, as King James managed to reach the unprecedented milestone at the beginning of the second quarter. The crowd at the Crypto.com Arena greeted LeBron with a standing ovation as he took a seat on the bench.

LeBron scored 26 points and dished out 9 dimes during his milestone game. However, the night ended in disappointment for him and the Lakers, as the Denver Nuggets ran away with a comprehensive 114-124 victory over the Lakers. The combined might of LeBron and Anthony Davis wasn’t a match for Denver’s carefully crafted and well-structured roster, which won the 2023 NBA title. The Nuggets have set the benchmark for excellence in recent seasons, and teams such as the Lakers have found it challenging to match them.

LeBron’s pursuit of his fifth ring

Last season, when James along with Anthony Davis took the franchise all the way to the Western Conference Finals, he wouldn’t have thought they would be swept off by the Nuggets. King James averaged 35.5 minutes/game, 28.9 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 6.8 assists. Despite that, they lost. And since then he has been putting in some work. As per ESPN’s Rob Pelinka, James was doing early morning workouts to better prepare himself for this season. Perhaps he is rejuvenating himself and treating it like one of the first seasons.

However, LeBron isn’t nonchalant. He will not just stand there and observe teams vie for championships. At 39, James will spare no effort to become a champion again. If he really wants a fifth ring, he will push his body beyond limits to get it. He will take innumerable risks to get that ring. He will do anything in his power to pursue that fifth ring.

Considering his feat, and the fact that he is going to be 40 soon, LeBron would want to differentiate himself, as always. He would want to set his court apart from legends like Michael Jordan, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Bill Russell, and Kobe Bryant. He would want the fifth ring. And he knows for a fact that as he ages each day, the window to achieve this target is narrowing. Securing that ring would mean he solidifies his legacy further, as not just one of the greats, but rather the greatest in NBA’s history.

The prospects of him winning a title with the Lakers franchise might be unlikely, though. It has been a while since his last win with the Lakers. As a team, they have managed to take care of things this entire past week, but so have the other teams in the Western Conference. They beat the Clippers in a hallway series, and they defeated the Wizards, extending the game to an overtime, on their second night of back-to-back games. And even when they could not beat the Nuggets, the defending champions, they still had their bittersweet moments.

It is a little embarrassing though, to keep losing to just one time over and over again. So, maybe, if just maybe Bron wants another ring, could he find it with Lakers or would he have to travel somewhere? Perhaps with Steph?

Trade rumors to Warriors

February started with rumors ablaze of LeBron James being pursued by the Golden State Warriors. It was a turn of events orchestrated by Draymond Green, as per ESPN. He shares his agent with King James and encourages his team to pursue Bron over a possible trade. It indeed was an extraordinary attempt to bring together two rivals in NBA history – Bron and Steph Curry.

Although nothing fruitful came out, Jeanie Buss, despite their unwillingness, would be open if James was determined. Rich Paul, on the other hand, stated how Bron wants to remain a Laker, with no desire to join the Warriors. Together, King James and the Warriors franchise have contested 4 times in NBA finals in the past. There have been times when he was a part of the Cavaliers. These were the finals that defined his rivalry against Curry but still managed to produce some of the most amazing moments in history.

So even though he is almost 40, James still is effective. There might be a slight possibility that the trade might just have worked for James to win his fifth ring. LeBron pairing up with Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green would certainly be fascinating. During a recent episode of the 7 PM in Brooklyn with Carmelo Anthony, Green went as far as to say that if James joined them in the Bay Area, the Dubs would have clinched another title. He said, “The number one thing would be to win. You also have a group of guys that know how to win and so I think in looking at it, I think that team would win a championship, no problem.”

Although Green’s bullish remarks have raised eyebrows among fans, it’s hard to deny that the Warriors would have offered an exciting spectacle with LeBron on their roster. Having said that, the opportunity has passed for the Dubs and LeBron to join forces. However, the New York Knicks have emerged as a potential destination for LeBron in recent months. Moreover, the Knicks have been perennially linked to LeBron during his free agency periods in 2010 and 2018.

Is New York the ideal location for LeBron?

Back in 2010, LeBron thought of joining the New York Knicks. However, after a “disaster” meeting with the team’s owner, James decided to join the Miami Heat instead. In a recent interview, LeBron revealed that he was indeed close to joining the Knicks in 2010. He said, “During my free agency period in 2010, it was one of the teams that I looked at. So I’ve had that thought in my career.”

However, the Knicks have improved significantly both at the executive level and as a team since 2010. Currently, the Knicks possess one of the most talented rosters in the entire NBA, setting the stage for them to contend for the championship for the foreseeable future. But they lack a bona fide superstar who could propel them to greater heights, and LeBron might just be the missing piece to elevate them to the next level.

The Knicks already possess players like Jalen Brunson, Julius Randle, and OG Anunoby. Add in LeBron, and they have one of the most formidable teams in the entire NBA. Furthermore, the Knicks have the necessary trade capital to pull off a trade for LeBron, and they also boast sufficient cap space to potentially sign him in free agency.

Changing teams would be the best course of action for LeBron James, who wants to make his final years on the court count for something. His basketball IQ, playmaking, and immense experience in postseason basketball would undoubtedly have a significant impact on the Knicks should they manage to acquire him. LeBron and the current Knicks’ roster are a match made in heaven, and here too, Bron could easily fulfill his wish of winning his fifth ring. But would he? What about his wish to play with his son?

Will Bronny and his dad ever play together?

This is one wish all James fans have been looking forward to. It has been LeBron James’ long-time wish to play alongside his son, Bronny. So much so, that at the beginning of this year, rumors started to afloat that the Lakers might as well be considering drafting Bronny this year. A possible reason why Bron did not pick up on the above-mentioned trade opportunities. But later, he even softened his stance by saying he was okay with Bronny and him playing for different teams too.

Bronny, 6’4, is an excellent prospect, but the freshman does not come with a lot of credibility. He started with 2 collegiate games and then was removed for a few months because of a cardiac arrest during a workout session at Trojans. And currently, in his 19 appearances, Bronny is averaging  5.5 points, 2.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and almost 20 minutes/game.

Considering this, ESPN analysts brought out a mock draft with chances of Bronny getting drafted this year being slim to none. There are speculations that Bronny might be drafted next year instead of 2024. Combating this, father James took to X (formerly Twitter) and in a now-deleted tweet, wrote, “Can y’all please just let the kid be a kid and enjoy college basketball,” He continued, “The work and results will ultimately do the talking no matter what he decides to do. If y’all don’t know he doesn’t care what a mock draft says, he just WORKS! Earned Not Given!”

In all honesty, King James with his thread of tweets has sparked many conversations about his son’s future. And even though his plans beyond this season aren’t public, his desire to play with his son before retirement looks bleak. He says he is fine with whatever decision his son makes and whatever happens, but his impending retirement is shining like a bright light in a tunnel across. Eventually, sooner, more than later, it is to come.

LeBron James and plans for retirement

The NBA has witnessed many legends grace the hardwood floor. Most of them are yet to reach the zenith of excellence as King James has. His scoring prowess, his ability to dominate different facets of the game, and his faith to achieve the unachievable have established him as of of the all-time greats. But again, he does not want to be one of the all-time greats, he wants to isolate himself in a club where he is the greatest, just like he did when he entered 40,000 club, 2 days ago.

James once said, “To hit feats and have milestones throughout my career, they all mean something to me. Absolutely”. Further adding, “Obviously, there’s a pecking order of which ones are higher than others. But I would be lying to you if I said no, it doesn’t mean anything. It absolutely does.” So even if the 40,000 milestone is probably one of the last big moments of his career, we still don’t know how many more such moments are incoming. His career so far is one to savor, since eventually a day will come when James will hang his shoes up. Unimaginable but true. In fact, before the All-Star Weekend progressed, this was a swansong even he sang in front of the pressers. He said,  “I don’t know how many seasons I have left. I know it’s not that many. … I was asked this question a couple of days ago: ‘Will you take the farewell tour or just Tim Duncan it?’ I’m 50/50.”

However, despite being 39 years old, LeBron still might have a couple of seasons left in his tank because this is what ESPN reported, James said around the same weekend: “I am a Laker and I’m happy and been very happy being a Laker the last six years and hopefully it stays that way”. Even though it answers the question he wants to stay a Laker or not, his statement also follows this: “But I don’t have the answer to how long it is or which uniform I’ll be in. Hopefully [it] is with the Lakers. It’s a great organization, so many greats. But we’ll see.”

The ‘But we’ll see’ has us all flabbergasted! LeBron hasn’t been very happy with his team’s performance so far, at least until January he wasn’t. He also posted an hourglass emoji on X (formerly Twitter) in the middle of the night, after the Lakers lost to the Hawks. But coming back to the point, he is still a part of the Lakers, he still is willing to play with Bronny but can play against him too. He is just a father looking out for the best for his son.

So even if he wins his fifth ring this year, he reaches the finals, he makes 10,000 more points, he’s already won everything. He’s already there. He has a legacy, a billion-dollar empire, a devoted family, and fans who are crazy about him. So even when he is trying to surpass Kareem Abdul-Jabbar or Michael Jordan, he does not have to. He is Lebron James! That’s enough. The ink might never dry on his legacy, it seems that the curtains aren’t going to fall on his magnificent career, anytime soon. His ambition keeps proving that again and again. 4 rings or 5 or 10 or 20, he will go down as the greatest one to do so!

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