NBA insider drops hint on LeBron James' potential NBA retirement amid his reduced usage on Lakers

LeBron James is currently averaging some of the best numbers of his career. In addition to his lowest turnover average of the past decade, James is shooting a career-high 45.9% from downtown. At the same time, while he's averaging 35.0 minutes per game, a figure on average with recent years, he's also posting a career-low 27.2 usage rate.

Given that, and the fact that James is turning 40 years old in December, NBA Insider Shams Charania believes that next season could potentially be James' last. On Thursday's episode of First Take, Charania said that after hearing James say that he isn't going to play until the wheels fall off, he thinks that the stars could align for a retirement.

With the NBA All-Star Weekend festivities set to take place in Los Angeles next year, Charania said there could be some "momentum" toward James walking away after Year 23.

Of course, Charania also mentioned that there's a chance Bryce James could keep his dad around for another year or two:

"I found it interesting this week he said he's not going to play until the wheels fall off. Right. And my sense is next season could potentially be his last season in the NBA. Now, could he play another season after that? 2026-27, potentially.

"Bryce James, his youngest son, class of 2025. Maybe Bryce James keeps him around an extra year or two. But I do think next season, All- Star game in LA, there might be some good momentum there for that."

You can see his comments in the video above beginning around the 50-second mark.

"We're never gonna see this again" - Shams Charania praises LeBron James for numbers in Year 22

Heading into the 2024-25 NBA season, LeBron James was voted as the best player on Team USA by his fellow Olympians. Time and time again, the future Hall of Famer proved that despite closing in on 40 years old, he still has what it takes to lead a team to victory.

After capturing gold in Paris, James shifted his sights to the NBA season under newly-appointed coach JJ Redick. The team rattled off three straight wins to start the year, defeating the Timberwolves, Suns and Kings in quick succession.

Despite a 1-4 five-game stretch that followed, Los Angeles seems to be back on track, winning three straight, including a 128-123 win over another Western Conference team in the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday.

During the game, LeBron James recorded a triple-double with a team-high 35 points to go along with 12 rebounds and a game-high 14 assists. On Thursday's episode of First Take, Charania weighed in:

"We're never gonna see this again. Stepen A, this man is about to be 40 years old next month. His best 3-point percentage of his career, his best free throw percentage of his career. He's got the second most assists of his career and that's with the lowest usage rating of his career."

Following Wednesday's win, LeBron James and the Lakers will be back in action on Friday when they face off with Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs.