LA Lakers star Luka Doncic seemed to fire an indirect shot towards teammate LeBron James's longevity with a retirement remark on Friday.
Luka Doncic fires shot at LeBron James
Doncic was picked as a starter for the 2026 NBA All-Star Game, representing the World Team under the league's new USA vs The World format. Ahead of the game, he was questioned what age he wants to retire, where he cheekily referenced James' age.
“Definitely not 41," Doncic said. "I’m not playing until 41, I’ll tell you that.”
Is LeBron James playing his last season in the NBA?
Reportedly, LeBron James wants to wrap his career at home in Northeast Ohio. He displayed strong emotion and even signalled that he might be nearing retirement as his career winds down, after an emotional tribute from the Cavaliers on Wednesday. He was drafted No.1 by Cleveland in 2003 and later came back in 2014 to win the franchise's first NBA title in 2016.
James will not be eligible for the 2025-26 postseason awards. He was ruled out of the Lakers' game against the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday because of left foot arthritis, which will be his 18th game missed.
He can not reach the league's retirement of playing at least 65 regular-season matches to become eligible for postseason awards. This brings a surprising end to an unprecedented streak of being named to an All-NBA team for back-to-back 21 seasons.