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As disappointing as the end to the Los Angeles Lakers' season was, no one can question just how excellent of a player LeBron James remains even though he's geriatric by NBA standards. He turned 40 this past December and didn't look like he lost too many steps. And with Luka Doncic now at the controls of the offense, James was free to allocate more of his energy towards the defensive end of the floor, and his incredible play all season long certainly received the plaudits it deserved.
On Wednesday night, the NBA finally announced the results of the 2025 NBA MVP award voting — with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander winning the prestigious award by earning 71 of a possible 100 first-place votes. The usual suspects rounded out the top five: Nikola Jokic continued to be the most dominant player in basketball, Giannis Antetokounmpo stuffed the stat sheet, while Jayson Tatum and Donovan Mitchell were the best players on 60-win teams.
But coming in at sixth place was James — the most consistent force that led the new-look Lakers to a 50-win season and perhaps could have gone deeper into the playoffs had they faced a different team in the first round. And this was quite the feat for the 40-year-old version of James who, despite not being the singular most unstoppable force in the NBA anymore, remains one of the best players in the NBA.
As a result, fans celebrated James' unparalleled longevity.
“Lebron came in 6th in MVP voting at 40 years old…MJ could never,” X user @MalaceWithMurph wrote.
“lebron being 6th in mvp voting going on 41 years of age is beyond crazy,” @LakeShowUp added.
“LeBron getting MVP votes at 40 and you tell me he's not the greatest of all time,” @amiteshprasad99 furthered.
“Lebron getting MVP votes for 22 years straight is crazy,” @JaySpencee put everything in perspective.
LeBron James to run it back with the Lakers for Year 23?
LeBron James has said plenty of times in the past that he is not going to play until the wheels fall off. But that doesn't appear to be in danger of happening anytime soon. This past season, he averaged 24.4 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 8.2 assists on 51/38/78 shooting splits — making him well-deserving of a sixth-place finish in the MVP voting.
James has nothing more to prove in his career. But perhaps he wants to go out by winning his fifth championship ring. And perhaps the Lakers can give him that opportunity next season, provided that they beef up their frontcourt after their lack of size was exposed in this year's playoffs.
