When LeBron James hinted at retirement, was he trying to divert the attention from the blue and yellow brooms lying about? After 20 seasons of history-making dominance, a new question: How much more of LeBron do we get to see? ✍️ sam_amick:
As James announced in his vintage dramatic form at the ESPYs recently, where he commanded that Dolby Theatre stage in Los Angeles with his family by his side, his public flirtation with retirement nearly two months before was a false alarm that so many had suspected.
“The real question for me is, ‘Can I play without cheating this game?’ ” James said with a somber tone. “The day I can’t give the game everything on the floor is the day I’ll be done.” Cue the long pause, with James’ grin growing and his swagger resurfacing as he delivered the official update.So now, after two decades of history-making dominance by the “kid from Akron,” a new question emerges: How much more of this basketball legend do we get to enjoy?
While James’ résumé is already seen by some as worthy of GOAT status, the problem with that debate is that it puts the focus on the past during a time when we shouldn’t be distracted from the present. What James did last season, and what he looks fully capable of doing for the foreseeable future, has never been done by a player at this stage of life.