Report: Before Lakers were eliminated, various sources left door open for LeBron to leave L.A.

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James is clearly in the twilight of his NBA career. He’s played more than 20 seasons in the league and is 40 years old.

James will have only a finite number of chances left to add to his collection of NBA titles before he retires from the league, and it’s been a little while since he advanced deep into the playoffs with the Lakers. L.A. reached the Western Conference Finals in 2023. Before that, the last time the Lakers advanced past the first round of the playoffs came when they won a title in 2020.

Reportedly, before the Lakers were eliminated from the 2025 NBA Playoffs following their Game 5 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves, there were a number of sources who wouldn’t rule out the possibility of James joining another team in pursuit of another ring.

“So, might James think about finishing his career elsewhere in pursuit of a fifth ring?” The Athletic’s Jovan Buha and Sam Amick asked. “When posed that question, both league sources close to James and team sources would not rule that possibility out. And that was before the revealing elimination game.”

While the report from Buha and Amick might seem a little concerning from the Lakers’ side of the coin at first glance, James made some comments after Game 5 that are worth mentioning.

After he provided an answer that seemingly implied his future with the Lakers might be up in the air, he clarified that what he said had nothing to do with him departing Los Angeles.

James has played for just three teams over the course of his NBA career — the Cleveland Cavaliers and Miami Heat along with the Lakers — and has been a member of the storied Los Angeles franchise for a long time now.

He has logged seven seasons as a Laker since he signed with them in the summer of 2018. James has also played more games with Los Angeles than any team outside of the Cavaliers, who drafted him all the way back in 2003.

If James suits up for the Lakers or any team for that matter in the 2025-26 campaign, he will set an NBA record for most seasons played by a single player. He’s currently tied with former NBA journeyman Vince Carter for the most with a whopping 22 seasons.