LeBron James was staring at his basketball mortality in the face.
His team had been swept in the Western Conference finals the previous spring and his body was showing undeniable signs of age, the mileage mounting while James’ willingness to keep fighting seemed to lessen.
“I’ve got a lot to think about, to be honest,” he said the night the Lakers got bounced in 2023. “Just for me personally going forward with the game of basketball, I’ve got a lot to think about.”
A little more than 16 months later, the questions about the future feel like ancient history.