Credit: Twitter
LeBron James ended his 20th season in the NBA as the Lakers got four straight losses to Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference Finals on Monday. It’s for the first time that he has been swept before entering the championship round. However, LeBron ended his post-game press conference by subtly dropping hints that he might just have played the last NBA game of his career, and that he could possibly retire from the game.
The 38-year-old James ended the season as the all-time leading scorer, but there’s simply so much that he could do. With 40 points against the Nuggets on Monday night in Game 4, LeBron James becomes the oldest player in NBA history to score 40 points in a playoff game and reached the 8,000 points mark in the playoffs.
Addressing the press conference, James surely got some eyebrows raised as he dropped hints at retiring from the game. The lakers forward said, "I don't like to say it's a successful year because I don't play for anything besides winning championships at this point in my career," James said. "You know, I don't get a kick out of making a Conference (Finals) appearance. I've done it, a lot. And it's not fun to me to not be able to be a part of getting to the Finals."
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The NBA's all-time leading scorer further added, "We'll see what happens going forward. I don't know. I don't know. I've got a lot to think about, to be honest. Just for me personally going forward with the game of basketball, I've got a lot to think about."
LeBron finished with 40 points, nine rebounds, and nine assists, including a playoff career high for points in a half. However, it clearly failed to be enough as the Lakers lost to the Nuggets 113-111. The Lakers led the game by 15 points in the first half before the Nuggets took over in the third quarter 36-16. With the Nuggets at 113-111, James had a chance to tie the score in the last 26 seconds; however, Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon's defense locked him in.
Notably, James previously stated that his one goal is to play alongside his eldest son, Bronny James, who is just a few years away from being eligible for the NBA draft, but the tone changed after the elimination.