June 30 (Reuters) – LeBron James, a four-time NBA champion and the league’s all-time leading scorer, has told the Los Angeles Lakers he plans to play for another team next season, according to an ESPN report on Tuesday.
James has spent the last eight seasons of his glittering career with the Lakers, leading them to a title in 2020 after two separate stints with the Cleveland Cavaliers and four years with the Miami Heat.
The Lakers did not immediately respond when asked to comment on the ESPN report, which cited James’ agent and surfaced amid talk that the Golden State Warriors are pursuing the Lakers forward.
The 41-year-old James, who last March surpassed Robert Parish’s record for most career regular-season games played, has continued to perform at an elite level despite his age. Last February, he earned a league-record 22nd consecutive All-Star selection.
FATHER-SON DUO
In a testament to his durability, James and his son Bronny became the first father-son duo to play together in a regular-season NBA game in October 2024, fulfilling what he had long said was one of his remaining basketball goals.
James, a four-time NBA Finals Most Valuable Player, joined the Lakers in 2018.
He was selected with the first pick in the 2003 NBA Draft by his hometown Cavaliers, where he spent seven seasons before announcing during a live TV special titled “The Decision” that he was leaving for Miami.
The announcement damaged James’ public image and led to many people burning his replica No. 23 jerseys on Cleveland’s streets that night.
In Miami, James teamed up with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh to create an instant powerhouse that won two NBA titles during their four seasons together in South Beach.
James then returned to Cleveland and in 2016 rallied the team from a 3-1 series deficit in the NBA Finals to stun Golden State and make good on his promise to deliver the Cavaliers their first championship.
Two years later, James again left his hometown team, where he remains the franchise leader in nearly every major statistical category, to join the Lakers, where for the first time he played in the NBA’s Western Conference.
(Reporting by Frank Pingue in TorontoEditing by Rod Nickel)
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