LeBron James Set to Make NBA History in Lakers vs Warriors Game

While James won't officially be the NBA's longest ever tenured player until October, he's already spent more time on an NBA court than any other player in history. His 71,104 career minutes played in 1,854 combined regular and postseason appearances are both league records. James is also two years removed from setting the NBA scoring record, breaking Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's long-standing mark against the Oklahoma City Thunder in February 2023.

While there's been no real indication given about how long James truly plans to stay in the league, it's hard to imagine he will eclipse the 25-season mark and it's possible he could retire as soon as next summer given the fact that the Los Angeles Lakers seem keen on getting him off the books in favor of making Luka Doncic the financial and symbolic centerpiece of the league's most iconic franchise.

Could Curry Match The Mark?

Golden State Warriors superstar Stephen Curry is entering his 18th season himself, though at 37 years old, he's only three years younger than James despite being drafted five years later. If Curry wanted to match the 23-season standard that James will set on October 21, he'd have to play five more seasons beyond 2025-26, or until he's 42 years old.

If James plays another season or two, that's an additional year beyond Curry's age 42 season that he would have to play to potentially match James' record.

While I wouldn't bet on that particular situation, Curry did say in a recent interview with Complex's Speedy Morman that he doesn't plan on retiring any time soon.

The Warriors' opening night matchup against the Lakers will be the second game of NBC's opening night double-header, marking the first package of games on the network will air since its broadcasting rights expired after the 2001-02 season. Tip-off is scheduled for 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT.