Ahead of the 2024-25 NBA season and Team USA’s redemption campaign in the 2024 Paris Olympics, LeBron James addressed the talks as to how the Lakers can actually make a push towards a title with him already inching closer to a possible retirement from the NBA in the years to come. James did not hold back in his confident answer, saying that he can definitely win a title before he moves on from the game.

So far, this has been a quiet offseason for the Lakers. They have drafted Dalton Knecht and Bronny James, then later signed LeBron to a max contract that has player options one year after another. No upgrades or massive roster changes were made, and a lot of familiar faces are also returning to the team heading into the next campaign.

And yet, LeBron has full confidence that he can come up with a massive title in the next few years or so. That says a lot about how the Lakers can actually hope to see a title run as well, and it cannot be denied that James is definitely yearning to snag one more title before he moves on from the NBA.

James’ Unwavering Confidence

The Lakers went on to win big in the 2020 NBA Bubble when James and Anthony Davis led the way to win their first championship in a decade. However, that success could not be sustained well as the Lakers would go on to come up with short playoff runs, with the best one being in the 2023 Playoffs where they reached the Western Conference Finals – only to get swept by the Denver Nuggets. The 2024 NBA Playoffs sort of had the same ending, with the Nuggets ousting them in the first round in five games.

"We still have two guys who commit every single day, myself and AD. We commit to excellence," James said. "We're not that far off. We were one year removed from the Western Conference Finals. This past year didn't go as well as we would like, but we're not that far off.”

The Lakers have made significant changes to its coaching staff though. JJ Redick was hired as the head coach, while the team has added massive winners in Nate McMillan and Scott Brooks to serve as assistant coaches for Redick’s staff. One can say that the Lakers are definitely gearing up for a massive war in the Western Conference that has just got stacked at this point.

James Not Slowing Down

James has turned down his $51.4 million player option and rejoined the Lakers at a pay cut to help the team come up with a good addition to the squad and improve their chances. However, it is worth noting that James alone remains at the top of his game even at the age of 39, which says a lot about the performances that he can offer in the coming seasons until he retires.

For context, James averaged 25.7 points, 8.3 assists, and 7.3 rebounds in 71 games for the 2023-24 season. He even shot 54% from the field, including 41% from three. These numbers eerily mirror the same stats that he had in the 2015-16 season, the same campaign where he led Cleveland to its first championship.

James is not backing down in the game, and he is certainly playing at a high level, this says a lot about how he can take his game to the next level and possibly guide the Lakers to one last championship before he retires.