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FILE – Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James throws chalk in the air before an NBA basketball game against the Golden State Warriors in San Francisco, April 9, 2026.<\/p>\n
Jeff Chiu\/AP Photo\/Jeff Chiu<\/p>\n
NEW YORK (AP) \u2014 If LeBron James knows where he will play this coming season, he’s still not saying.<\/p>\n
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The NBA’s career scoring king and current free agent spoke publicly for the first time in weeks Thursday afternoon, indicating that a decision is close \u2014 though stopping short of revealing which team he’ll choose to play for this fall, despite at least one cry from someone in a jampacked room shouting for him to \u201cpick a team.\u201d<\/p>\n
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\u201cI won\u2019t hold you guys up too much longer,” James said.<\/p>\n
The four-time NBA champion had a pair of appearances Thursday: He recorded an episode of his \u201cMind the Game\u201d podcast alongside guest co-host Tyrese Haliburton of the Indiana Pacers in New York on the opening day of Fanatics Fest, then spoke at the Game Plan Summit presented by CNBC and Boardroom later in the afternoon.<\/p>\n
At the summit, he told Boardroom co-founder Rich Kleiman in an on-stage conversation that making this decision has a slew of layers \u2014 many of which, it seems, are off the court.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s not just about the team,\u201d James said. \u201cThere\u2019s so many other factors that I\u2019m factoring in right now on what best fits me as a player, what best fits me as a person and what best fits my happiness, and also my family as well.\u201d<\/p>\n At Fanatics Fest, an 11-year-old in the crowd asked James about free agency and his next team \u2014 \u201cfirst of all, that was a hell of a question and some of the media people here probably should learn from the young fella,” James said \u2014 and the youngster got perhaps the best answer of the session, with James indicating that the 2026-27 season may not necessarily be his last as a player.<\/p>\n \u201cIt’s a big decision for not only myself, but for my family as well,\u201d James said. \u201cJust for the last part of my career and where I want to spend the last few years or the last year or the last two years of my NBA career … I’m going to try to fit into whatever team I’m going into \u2014 but also give them all the tools and give them all the knowledge that I’ve been able to grasp over the last 23 years. I know the game. I know the ins and outs of the game of basketball.\u201d<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n James playfully chided Haliburton for asking him about his future \u2014 \u201cdidn\u2019t we talk about this in the back?\u201d James asked, and Haliburton said he would \u201dleave it alone.\u201d<\/p>\n Of course, they didn’t leave it alone. James made reference to a slew of teams such as Cleveland, Miami, Philadelphia and Golden State, though didn’t appear to give much in the way of hints. He did sip from a bottle of red wine that he opened and shared with Haliburton, calling it one of his podcast traditions.<\/p>\n And when fans shouted out suggestions for James’ next team \u2014 one even asked him to play for the New York Yankees \u2014 no clues were forthcoming.<\/p>\n \u201cWe’ll see,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n In Miami, where the Heat introduced Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bobby Portis Jr. as their newest forwards on Thursday, team president Pat Riley acknowledged there have been talks about a reunion with James.<\/p>\n But the Heat don’t seem to have any hints either.<\/p>\n \u201cRight now, I think we\u2019re like everybody else,\u201d Riley said. \u201cWe\u2019re just waiting to see what he does and then we\u2019ll see what happens.\u201d<\/p>\n Same goes for the NBA: Commissioner Adam Silver spoke at the Game Plan Summit not long after James on Thursday. Silver said he has a bit of an \u201cinkling\u201d on which way James is leaning, but no concrete word.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n The league office, Silver said, would like to know for one specific reason.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have to finish up the schedule and where LeBron plays will affect the schedule,\u201d Silver said. \u201cSo, I would like him to make his announcement already so we can finish the schedule. As you can imagine, the teams are calling us, the networks are calling us, and everybody wants to lock in the schedule. It will influence how we set the schedule, how we set opening week, Christmas Day, etc. I need him to make a decision. But the direct answer is I have no inside information.\u201d<\/p>\n James is the NBA\u2019s oldest active player at 41 and the only player in league history to have a career spanning 23 seasons; this coming season will be his 24th. Speculation has been rampant for more than two months about his future, officially starting in May when the Los Angeles Lakers were eliminated from the NBA playoffs.<\/p>\n At that time, James said he didn\u2019t know what he would be doing.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n And the only developments that he\u2019s revealed since came on June 30, when he said he would play this coming season and that he was leaving the Lakers after an eight-season run highlighted by the 2020 NBA title.<\/p>\n For more than two weeks, the NBA has been waiting to hear what comes next. James, as he did in a social media post at the time, lauded his time with the Lakers, who also offered him well wishes as he moves forward.<\/p>\n \u201cI spent eight great years with the Los Angeles Lakers,\u201d James said.<\/p>\n James\u2019 resume is beyond compare in NBA history. He\u2019s a 22-time All-Star, a 21-time All-NBA selection, a four-time Most Valuable Player, a four-time NBA Finals MVP, a three-time All-Star Game MVP, and was a member of the NBA\u2019s 75th anniversary team.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n He\u2019s also coming off a season where he averaged 20.9 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 7.2 assists per game. For his career, he\u2019s averaged 26.8 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 7.4 assists in more than 1,600 games.<\/p>\n James started his career in Cleveland in 2003 and spent seven seasons with the Cavaliers before heading to Miami for four seasons \u2014 where he won his first two titles. He then returned to Cleveland for four more seasons, leaving in 2018 to start an eight-season run with the Lakers.<\/p>\n Cleveland and Miami are believed to be on James’ radar again as he weighs this decision, as are several other teams including Philadelphia, Minnesota and Golden State.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m looking forward to what comes next as I wind down my journey,\u201d James said.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Reynolds reported from Miami.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n<\/a>
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