LeBron James isn’t retiring. The NBA’s all-time leading scorer announced on Wednesday night at the ESPYs that he will be back for his 21st season.
James accepted the award for the Best Record-Breaking Performance of the last year, commemorating him passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the NBA’s all-time scoring lead. That’s when he made the announcement.
“When the season ended, I said I wasn’t sure if I was gonna keep playing, and I know a lot of experts told you guys what I said, but I’m here now speaking for myself,” James said.
James said his retirement contemplation wasn’t something he said on a whim.
“In that moment, I’m asking myself if I can still play without cheating the game. Can I give everything to the game still? Truth is, I’ve been asking myself this question at the end of the season for a couple years now. I just never openly talked about it.”
He added, “I don’t care how many more points I score or what I can and cannot do on the floor. The real question for me is ‘can I play without cheating this game?’ The day I can’t give everything on the floor is the day I’ll be done.
“Lucky for you guys, that day is not today.”
“And you know what brings me back every year is watching and coaching my boys and their teammates,” James continued. “I see those kids, and it brings me right back to why I play. Those kids get me back to where I need to be – just the pure love of this beautiful game.
“So yeah, I still got something left. A lot left.”
In his 20th season, James averaged 28.9 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 6.8 assists.