LeBron James Claims He Feels Better At 38 Than He Did At 18

When LeBron James' NBA career began all the way back in 2003, no one would have thought that he would still be going strong 20 years later. It shouldn't be possible for someone with that much mileage on their body to still perform at a high level, but James has broken the mold.

He put on another outstanding performance on Friday night against the Atlanta Hawks, scoring a season-high 47 points to lead the Los Angeles Lakers to a 130-121 win. Hawks big man Onyeka Okongwu called him the GOAT after that display, and Paul Pierce rather surprisingly said that too! It is incredible that he can put on a show like this after all these years, but LeBron said he feels better now than he did when he was 18 years old.

via ESPN:

"I feel better than [he felt at] 18," James said. "I didn't know what I could become at 18. But I just knew if I continued to put in the work, I continued to be true to the game, then I could be one of the greatest players to ever play this game. I just always believed that. ...

"There are times when I'm on the floor where I do feel like a kid again. That's for sure."

Become one of the greatest players to ever play, he did indeed. LeBron had such high expectations placed on him when he entered the league and it is crazy to think that he has probably surpassed them.

Anthony Davis Defended LeBron James From His Critics

While he probably does feel better in certain aspects now than he did when he was 18, LeBron knows that the end is not that far away. Even he can only hold off Father Time for so long, and he wants to win more championships before he's done playing. He made that clear recently, saying he does not want to finish his career playing at this level from a team aspect, as the Lakers continue to be mediocre.

His teammate Anthony Davis had no issues whatsoever with LeBron saying that, adding that it makes sense for James to want to compete for titles in the few years he has left in the NBA. The only way they have any kind of chance at that is if AD stays healthy, and LeBron would be hoping that his co-star returns to action soon.