The 2025-26 campaign is not completely over, as the league is still waiting to crown this year’s champion. Despite that, several people are already looking ahead to what LeBron James will do this summer.
The Los Angeles Lakers’ 2025-26 campaign is now over after being swept by the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference semifinals.
With the Lakers eliminated from championship contention, the focus shifts fully to James and whether he’ll remain in the league.
Why Nick Wright Believes LeBron James Isn’t Retiring Yet
While James has yet to make anything official, speculation about what he’ll do remains persistent. One person with an opinion on what the 41-year-old might do is Nick Wright, who shared his thoughts on “First Things First.”
According to Wright, James will remain in the league for not one, but two more years, bringing his career to 25 seasons.
Wright referenced a few instances in which James alluded to remaining in the league for a few more years after this season as the reason for his thinking.
In discussing which franchise the league’s all-time leading scorer might play for next, Wright thinks it’ll be the last one. Wright also did not want James to remain with the Lakers because he didn’t want him to close out his career as the third option behind Austin Reaves.
Afterward, he detailed where he thinks James should close out his career.
“It’s one thing for LeBron to go back to Cleveland, and be like ‘hometown, I’ll play for free, basically,’” Wright said. “It’s another thing entirely for the Lakers to be like, ‘We can’t pay you because we need to pay this guy who is not as good as you.’”
Chris Broussard, Wright’s co-host, weighed in, claiming James is still playing like a max-contract player, and then asked which team could give him that this summer.
“Barring a sign-and-trade, I don’t know,” Wright said. “But my answer to this is, I do want it to be his last game, I think New York would be [an] absolutely unbelievable final chapter if they don’t get over the hump this year. But my gut kinda tells me Cleveland.”
Wright believed the 41-year-old star could step in and replace James Harden for the Cleveland Cavaliers. He also said Donovan Mitchell had some similarities to Kyrie Irving, making him an ideal partner for James and a better fit to help the Cavaliers in their quest for another title.
James, at 41, is playing at an unprecedented level.
During the 2025-26 regular season, he suited up for 60 games, starting in each one. In those 60 outings, he averaged 20.9 points, 6.1 rebounds, 7.2 assists, and 1.2 steals.
If these numbers are any indication, James might still have it in him to be one of the Cavs’ primary scorers. He also has what it takes to be a distributor, helping get the team’s big men and shooters set up for easy baskets.
