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In the past five months, 36-year-old Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James and 43-year-old Tampa Bay Buccaneers icon Tom Brady have continued to laugh in the face of previously undefeated Father Time.
After leading the Los Angeles Lakers to the franchise's 17th title in his 17th season, James is the league's MVP frontrunner in his 18th despite a particularly unfavorable break. He has played in all 25 games, leading L.A. to a 19-6 record while averaging 25.6 points, 8.0 rebounds and 8.0 assists per game.
Brady, in his 21st season, reaffirmed his GOAT status in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' 31-9 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LV. Including playoffs, Brady played all 21 games and tossed 50 TD passes in his first season away from Bill Belichick.
Overall, the two legends have combined for 11 rings, 20(!) championship-round appearances, eight regular-season MVPs and nine finals/Super Bowl MVPs in their unparalleled runs dating back to the early 2000s.
James and Brady's unceasing primes have forced us to rethink the timeline of pro-sports careers. Both icons have outlasted all of their peers and rivals, and they still possess the resources, work ethic and commitment to prolonging their peaks.
But can Tom outlast LeBron? Don't necessarily rule it out.
On Monday, LeBron was asked about watching Brady win his seventh ring following the Lakers' victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder—L.A.'s second-straight overtime game.
“How do I wrap my head around it? He’s one of the GOATS. I’ve been watching him my whole life, seemed like my whole life,” he said in his postgame press conference. “…I watched him when he was with ‘ichigan playing against the Ohio State Buckeyes. … For him to win another one yesterday in the fashion that he won, it was pretty cool. It’s very inspiring for a guy like myself. But two different sports, two different positions.
“I don’t know how long I’m going to play the game,” James continued. “I don’t know how much more I’ll be able to give to the game. But the way I feel right now, we’ll see what happens. I have no timetable on it. I have no year of — ‘do I want to play until 30-this or 40 that?’ The game will let me know when it’s time.”
James is not quite as explosive attacking the rim or wreaking havoc on defense as he was a decade ago, but his game with the Lakers is arguably better than ever. Like Brady—who led the NFL in 20-plus yard completions in 2020—James is increasingly beating defenses “over the top,” nailing 39.8 percent of his 3-pointers on 6.8 attempts per game, both career-highs. The two athletes possess an unmatched intelligence that continues to grow with experience.
LeBron James' Retirement After Lakers Stint
James has never vocalized a specific retirement timetable, though he has elicited one notable signal. The father of three hasn't hidden his enthusiasm for accomplishing what Ken Griffeys did in 1990: taking an NBA floor with his son, Bronny. In December, James signed an extension that will keep him with the Lakers through 2023, when Bronny could be eligible for the draft.
“The best thing about it is the year I’ll be a free agent will be the same year my oldest son graduates high school,” James said, via ESPN's Dave McMenamim. “So I’ll have some options to see, for me personally, what I want to do forward, being around my family, being around my son more or continue to play this game I love with great health and great spirits.”
A lot can change before then. Bronny is 16 and is not necessarily a shoo-in to be a top-tier NBA prospect. Plus, his dad may not make it there. Over the past two weeks, LeBron Sr. has vacillated between claiming “I don't get tired” and displaying his fatigue. Last week, he acknowledged the physical toll the season takes on his body.
“I’m 36 years old, 18 years in the league. There ain’t no saving something for later on in the season.” James said. “I go hard when I’m out there and then I start my treatment after the game. I wish I could bank time. I wish I was Justin Timberlake in that movie [About Time] where I could bank some time, but I cannot do that at this point.”
“I’ll tell you, I don’t think that I can go until I’m 46 … I also don’t think my wife would like that very much,” he joked.
Following Saturday's win over the Detroit Pistons, James cracked that his “heart is not sustainable for two overtimes at this stage of my career”. (Before walking off the Zoom call on Monday — after setting the record for most triple-doubles after turning 35—James jokingly hollered “I AM SLEEPY AS SHIT.”)
Tom Brady Outlasting LeBron James?
Let's say that James, whose game may decline but will not fall off a cliff anytime soon, executes the Griffey and signs a one-year deal for the 2023-24 season with the team that drafts or signs Bronny. Based on the Gregorian calendar, if James were to see that season through and retire that summer, Brady may need to lace it up for Week 1 of the 2024 NFL season to outlast James—or retire later in that summer. That would require Brady to play three more years and (possibly) sign-up for a 25th season, which would begin one month after his 47th birthday.
Crazily, that number may not be unreachable for his generation's Julio Franco.
“I’d like to play until my mid-40s,” Brady told SI’s Peter King in 2017. “Then I’ll make a decision. If I’m still feeling like I’m feeling today, who knows?”
In 2019, his trainer/shaman/business partner, Alex Guerrero, told WEEI that Brady intended to play into his late 40s.
“I certainly do believe that 45 is a very realistic goal. … We talk about it all the time. Every year he just adds another year. He goes in and he’s like, ‘Guys, I feel so good still. I think I am going to go till 45.’ I am like, ‘OK.’ Now he’s like, ‘Alex, I think I can go like 46 or 47.’”
Earlier this month, ahead of his 10th Super Bowl appearance, Brady said he would “definitely consider” playing past 45.
Tom Brady on if he'll play past 45-years-old:
"Yeah I would definitely consider that" 🐐
(via @BenStandig)pic.twitter.com/ROdHMxWWet
— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) February 1, 2021
Brady's contract with Tampa runs through 2021, when the Bucs have a chance to be even better. Last week, head coach Bruce Arians said he wouldn't be surprised if an extension comes next.
All that said: Brady retiring after James may not be out of the realm of possibility.
Additionally, speculating from afar, Brady’s primary intellectual and business interest outside of winning football games seems to be his TB12 Method, which is focused on … prolonging athletic performance.
By contrast, James, while also manically and financially devoted to his body, boasts a diverse collection of side hustles, including a billion-dollar portfolio, a multimedia empire, and large-scale activist initiatives, among other endeavors. (Brady does co-own a production company with Michael Strahan).
To play armchair expert, it's possible Brady may be more personally obsessed with testing the limits of his athletic mortality than James, as if his continued excellence is the ultimate validation of his commitment to Guerrero and their unique pliability-based regimen.
In case accolades are a motivating factor, Brady nearly owns every passing and winning record in the book, while LeBron needs to score at an All-Star clip for about four more years to break the points record of Lakers legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Six rings may be tough, but five could cement his GOAT resumé.
As unfathomable as LeBron's sustained greatness is, it's even more mind-boggling to think of how fathomable Brady outlasting him is. For now, let's just appreciate the fact that not only are both still at the top of their games, but they don't seem to be slowing down.
